Comments on Ed Ketchoyian's articles RSS Syndication from SeekingAlpha.com http://seekingalpha.com/author/ed-ketchoyian/articles http://seekingalpha.com/article/69362-undoing-the-sprint-nextel-merger?source=feed#comment-588451 588451 Tue, 14 Jul 2009 23:16:59 -0400
Sprint is and always has been a consumer focused customer organization with little knowledge or interest in the business users. Nextel was almost exclusivly business oriented, that was their heritage. It was also the reason their churn was so low and their ARPU was so high. After the merger the Forsee team totally discounted the business user side of the company. Poor service and poor network performance started an mass exodus of these high value users that continues to this day. Dan is a breath of fresh air at the top level but there are too many legacy "dead wood" staff under him. His effectivness isn't being transmitted down into the company. I point the finger directly at Forsee for taking what could have been a remarkable opportuinty and turning it into a disaster. With the Sprint product portfolio, the Nextel Business reputation and the unique combined spectrum position they held, it could have been the dominant cellular carrier in the USA. Instead, it is fighting for it's corporate life, stemming losses and trying to rebuild. What a shame!!]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/69362-undoing-the-sprint-nextel-merger?source=feed#comment-236168 236168 Fri, 22 Aug 2008 01:51:45 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/79646-sprint-watch-a-12-month-strategic-prognosis?source=feed#comment-223728 223728 Wed, 06 Aug 2008 03:10:07 -0400
1. SprintNextel continues to lose customers (at an ever increasing rate, based on quarterly losses)
2. ARPU continues to drop while churn continues to spiral upward
3. Sprint introduces a pretty decent phone (i.e., the Instinct) but fails to equip it with Q-chat, wifi, and then only can manage to sell it to those that weren't necessarily willing to wait two more weeks for the 3G iPhone.
4. Sprint gave away 25% of their WiMAX stake because they know they can't possibly create a WiMAX network on their own.
5. They now admit that regulating "Nextel" as merely a product was a very BAD idea, and are now going to market "Nextel" again as a brand.
6. They've now instituted a data cap, making them no different from Verizon and AT&T.

This company is being beaten up and is against the ropes. SK Telekom tried to take them over last year around this time, but the BoD balked. Well, now NO COMPANY is making any offers for Sprint. Thing have simply gone from bad to worse. And unless Dan Hesse can wave a magic wand to fix the problems that the legacy Sprint folks have caused, this company will be toast.]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/74558-sprint-s-against-the-odds-turnaround-looks-less-and-less-likely?source=feed#comment-219806 219806 Sprint overcharged my small (US) company for over $50,000.00. We > caught them doing it and now they refuse to refund the over-payments. > You can read the full story at http://sprint-really-sucks.com]]> Thu, 31 Jul 2008 22:30:57 -0400 If so want to let us know how long you been doing this??


On May 22 07:46 AM AllenHarkler oad wrote:

> Sprint overcharged my small (US) company for over $50,000.00. We
> caught them doing it and now they refuse to refund the over-payments.
> You can read the full story at sprint-really-sucks.com]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/79646-sprint-watch-a-12-month-strategic-prognosis?source=feed#comment-178923 178923 Wed, 04 Jun 2008 02:30:24 -0400
Sprint change your habbit if you read this. ]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/79646-sprint-watch-a-12-month-strategic-prognosis?source=feed#comment-178483 178483 Tue, 03 Jun 2008 10:10:12 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/79646-sprint-watch-a-12-month-strategic-prognosis?source=feed#comment-178082 178082 Mon, 02 Jun 2008 14:14:00 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/79646-sprint-watch-a-12-month-strategic-prognosis?source=feed#comment-178042 178042 Mon, 02 Jun 2008 13:13:09 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/79646-sprint-watch-a-12-month-strategic-prognosis?source=feed#comment-177821 177821 Mon, 02 Jun 2008 08:34:11 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/79646-sprint-watch-a-12-month-strategic-prognosis?source=feed#comment-177799 177799 Mon, 02 Jun 2008 07:51:07 -0400 Does anyone at the new Clearwire know how to make money w/ IDEN? I believe so.]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/79646-sprint-watch-a-12-month-strategic-prognosis?source=feed#comment-177708 177708 Sun, 01 Jun 2008 23:28:04 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/73036-sprint-is-still-a-steal-at-current-levels?source=feed#comment-175709 175709 Thu, 29 May 2008 00:39:19 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/74558-sprint-s-against-the-odds-turnaround-looks-less-and-less-likely?source=feed#comment-171576 171576 Thu, 22 May 2008 07:46:56 -0400 sprint-really-sucks.com]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/70179-sprint-s-hesse-continues-to-show-leadership-but-doubts-remain?source=feed#comment-170790 170790 Tue, 20 May 2008 20:37:47 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/74558-sprint-s-against-the-odds-turnaround-looks-less-and-less-likely?source=feed#comment-169061 169061 Fri, 16 May 2008 16:45:16 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/74558-sprint-s-against-the-odds-turnaround-looks-less-and-less-likely?source=feed#comment-166405 166405 Mon, 12 May 2008 14:55:54 -0400 If you recalled all 4,000 employees laid off employees I believe you would have a great work force 1st of all. Next if you would look at cost savings money $$$,$$$,$$$ Sprint would save considering a reduction of vehicle leases that VP's, Directors Managers, and engineers, every employee who would like perk to benefit their pocket plus daily commuting to home. Consider pooled vehicle bases on a dept needs and only people who that really have business justification for vehicles such as field and wire line technicians who are living in the field. Not those that sit behind the desk all day and have no business need at all.
Count the cost savings for your per Sprint leased vehicles in you parking lot example: Lease $173 Lease Payment 2008 Ford Escape Term: 24 months Due at Signing: see dealer Program Plan: none Mileage: 10,500 miles/year plus $3.78 x 21 gallons equals $80 dollars a day x 30 days equal $2400 of gasoline per vehicle now due your own internal investigation consider how many vehicles that are being leased and reduce the vehicle count to the job need requirements not the luxury of commuting vehicle and free gas to each employee. Our stock price would be up and could bring a cost saving to our customers and would be able to recall it laid off work force.
]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/69362-undoing-the-sprint-nextel-merger?source=feed#comment-165619 165619 Sat, 10 May 2008 21:25:50 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/76091-vultures-already-inspecting-sprint-s-carcass?source=feed#comment-164049 164049 Thu, 08 May 2008 09:18:25 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/76091-vultures-already-inspecting-sprint-s-carcass?source=feed#comment-164023 164023 Thu, 08 May 2008 09:00:26 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/76091-vultures-already-inspecting-sprint-s-carcass?source=feed#comment-163753 163753 Wed, 07 May 2008 19:48:33 -0400 As an investor, anytime it bounces up, I buy puts.]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/76091-vultures-already-inspecting-sprint-s-carcass?source=feed#comment-163406 163406 Wed, 07 May 2008 11:24:01 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/76091-vultures-already-inspecting-sprint-s-carcass?source=feed#comment-163363 163363 Wed, 07 May 2008 10:41:02 -0400
Way to go Einstein!]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/76091-vultures-already-inspecting-sprint-s-carcass?source=feed#comment-163317 163317 Wed, 07 May 2008 09:53:15 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/76091-vultures-already-inspecting-sprint-s-carcass?source=feed#comment-163227 163227 Wed, 07 May 2008 08:23:31 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/74558-sprint-s-against-the-odds-turnaround-looks-less-and-less-likely?source=feed#comment-162256 162256 Mon, 05 May 2008 16:54:29 -0400
There's a problem with the systems. Sprint has this rebate pricing scheme in which you can have a 150 rebate off the price of a new phone once every 23 months. There's a glitch in the system that causes the rebate eligibility to be taken away in error.

The logical solution would be to FIX THE GLITCH. The second most logical solution would be to give access in the systems to correct the pricing... people call in, you click a button, problem solved.

Sprint did neither of these things... instead, they came up with a very complex "workaround" that sales support reps are expected to perform on an individual-case basis. At the same time, they started underbidding all the other customer-care type jobs in the area... we have Comcast, Qwest, Dish, and a bunch of others all paying higher! Basically Sprint is ending up hiring anyone with a pulse. When I started here with Nextel, you sometimes had to interview 3 times just to get a bottom-rung position and almost everyone in those positions had a college education or were in college. Now I'm working with people who are being picked up at jail to be brought to work and then taken back there at the end of the day or who are wearing ankle monitors!

...so you have an overly complex "solution" combined with people who don't understand or don't care about the job.

What outcome could one logically expect? This has been going on for over a year and I have heard of no plans to fix it. They simply threatened higher penalties to those who didn't perform the overly-complex workaround correctly. The main result was higher turnover rate of employees, resulting in a call center less able to perform the unnecessarily complex functions.

]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/74558-sprint-s-against-the-odds-turnaround-looks-less-and-less-likely?source=feed#comment-161610 161610 Sun, 04 May 2008 14:48:56 -0400
Sprint...stick a fork in them, they're done.]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/74558-sprint-s-against-the-odds-turnaround-looks-less-and-less-likely?source=feed#comment-161276 161276 Sat, 03 May 2008 20:21:19 -0400
There are legacy Nextel people still left? If so, they can't be in engineering. We were systematically purged by Kathy Walker and her sychophants, Usry, Azzi, Yosick, et al. Legacy Sprint people didn't have to interview for their jobs. Selection was based on pedigree, nepotism and knowing the secret handshake. Oh, and you had to live in KC/OP. If you want to stay around, go for brown.]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/74558-sprint-s-against-the-odds-turnaround-looks-less-and-less-likely?source=feed#comment-161268 161268 Sat, 03 May 2008 19:15:06 -0400 Your statement "...fostered a culture based on fear for one's job security and having the right political connections over self-initiative" is so true. Legacy Nextel employees are taking over the company whether they're qualified or not. The recent restructuring just put more of the wrong people in the wrong positions and purged many good Sprint employees. Past job performance is simply not a factor! The latest news of Deutche Telecom possibly buying Sprint may finally rid the company of the cancerous management as T-Mobile's SOP is to have everyone interview for their jobs. Although, with most of the legacy Nextel employees working their 10am-3:30pm shifts, the decisions will be easy.]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/74558-sprint-s-against-the-odds-turnaround-looks-less-and-less-likely?source=feed#comment-160295 160295 Thu, 01 May 2008 16:39:21 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/74558-sprint-s-against-the-odds-turnaround-looks-less-and-less-likely?source=feed#comment-160285 160285 Thu, 01 May 2008 16:27:38 -0400
The sad part is that the entire truth still has not been disclosed. You are right on the money in regard to the atmosphere of fear that prevails at Sprint. (Particularly true if you are a legacy Nextel employee.)

As you recall from my previous posts, I forewarned that their bonds would hit junk bond status. That seemed to be almost a prophetic call as that has now occurred.

You may also recall that I inidicated that there are considerable issues with the creative accounting of commissions. If the statement above in regard to suits actually occurs I will tell you right now that it will be the complete unraveling of Sprint. Bankruptcy will be their only alternative.

The amount of money at stake here (in my opinion) may likely reach into the billions of dollars in regard to what the dealers and employees have been cheated out of. I am anxiously awaiting someone to file a class action suit which I will gladly give witness of what I believe is of evidentury value.

As you know I have now left Sprint and gone to a competitor. This after MANY years of devoted work as a Nextel then Sprint employee. THough I have just recently started, I am so far litterally amazed at the cultural difference in the organizations. I knew I was unhappy at Sprint, but in reflection I realize that I was just miserable and what a relief it was to leave that behind.

Sprint is in real trouble Ed. Their simply confusing plan will not be their saviour. Their media blitz (3 times average) of the new iphone clone will not save them either. The changes need to occur from within and that is not likely to happen in my opinion.

Though I try to make my predictions as literal as possible, there is information that I can not disclose even now due to prior confidentiality agreements, however I will make this prognostication for your readers. The nightmare with IPCS is going to hurt Sprint more severely than anything that has thus far occurred. One more prediction for you would be this. The first quarter earnings will be better than forecasted but this will be a temporary blip. Unless the new phone model somehow does wonders in June (which I predict it will not) then the second quarter earnings call will be an unmitigated disaster. Needless to say I will be selling my shares shortly after the Q1 call as I am expecting the stock to take a very brief bump upwards though I do not believe it will last.

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