Aryamehr

Thursday Options Recap

AT the end of their Q3 they had $868 million in free cash flow, $200 million was assigned to their pension fund, leaving them with $668 million in Free Cash Flow. They also retired over $600 million in debt that was due in 2010. At the end of the quarter they had $5.9 Billion in cash with a credit facility of of $1.6 Billion, giving them a total liquidity of $7.5 B.

Now lets see what happened to their subscriber base, well their Pre Paid division called Boost Mobile once again had impressive net adds; 666,000. This is very impressive when you compare the sum of their net adds to that of other carriers. The combined Pre Paid net adds of PCS, Leap (aka Cricket) and T-Moble was no more than 245,000. What has been hurting Sprint was their lack of a credible line-up of Smart phones, however that has changed. At the end of Q1 2010 Sprint should have a line up of phones that will emulate that of any other Telco. This is when you should begin to see a positive churn. Why would anyone want to leave Sprint when they have the cheapest plans with the best line up? Remember Sprint has twice the 3G coverage of ATT and 14 times that of T-Mobile, not to mention that they are the only Telco with a substantial 4G platform.

What you need to remember is that Sprint's arsenal of phones just six months ago was unimpressive, however in Q1 2010 that disadvantage will change. Sprint's selection of new phones will begin to stop the bleeding and their 4G compatible phones will give it a critical advantage for coming to market first. What you need to do is be patient and add to your positons.

Apples to Apples: Will History Repeat Itself as Android Gains on the iPhone?

Great analogy.

Sprint's Upcoming Phone Lineup: It Has to Do Better than That

Knowing that Sprint has twice the 3G coverage of ATT and 14 times the coverage of T-Mobile, and that they are the only carrier with a 4G platform, makes me wonder why anyone would claim that their networks suck, especially when you they have been recognized for having the 'most reliable' network by PC Magazine, and recognized for their network 'speed' by Boy Genius. This was all without their 4G platform.

Not only do they have a great network but it is the most reasonable when considering price. ATT with half the 3G coverage of Sprint charges $50 more per month than Sprint on their equivalent "all you can use programs." On their equivalent 'Everything Mobile," program Sprint is $80 cheaper than ATT and VZ.

Sprint is so sure of their coverage and service that they will allow you to use any of their phones for 30 days without a contract. That is unequivocal proof of how good their service is against the rest of the Telcos.

What Sprint was two or three years ago has no bearing on what it is today and where it will be tomorrow.

Sprint's Upcoming Phone Lineup: It Has to Do Better than That

Six months ago Sprint had nothing! And I mean nothing, that is why their Q3 results look so lame. Three months ago they had the Pre, thats why their results improved, this quarter they will have numerous phones, the Pre, Pixi, Moment, Hero, Tour and the TouchPro2, mind you most of these phones will only be available in the mid quarter. Next quarter they will be the only carrier with a dual platform, 3G/4G, smartphone which will be included on the 2nd iteration of their Palm Pre. Give them a break, they have gone from nothing to a pretty impressive line-up that is only improving. As I have mentioned, with 17 cities already covered with 4G going on to over 25 within the next 6 weeks, Sprint should be ensconced to pretty well to fully meet its goal of having a ubiquitous 4G platform by the end of 2010. They have the warchest ($5.9 Billion in cash with a $1.6 Billion LOC) and they have laid down the right seeds for turning the trajectory of their business around. All they need is a little time, and I mean only a little time.

Sprint's Upcoming Phone Lineup: It Has to Do Better than That

Sprint's facts:

Total Liquidity: $7.5 billion ($5.9 in cash, $1.6 LOC)
YTD Free Cash Flow $2.1 billion, Q3 $864 million
(this is including their pension contribution)

Only carrier with a 4G platform
Twice the 3G coverage of ATT
14 times the coverage of T-Mobile
This Quarter they will have the best line-up of Smartphones.
(Palm Pre & Pixi, HTC Hero & Samsung Moment, Tour etc.)

As of todays trading they have a Market Cap of $8.5 Billion. This means Sprint could essentially buyout all its own shares with its current cash position. The only thing lacking at Sprint was a decent line-up of Smart phones and that has been fully addressed. At these prices Sprint should buy out its own shares. Its current cash flow could easily manage its debt maturities. In 2010 the only Non-Revolving debt that will be maturing is for $750 million which is due on 6/28/2010.

Sprint's spectrum holding could fetch more than $20 billion on the free market, which would easily payoff all its debts. Just food for thought for those of you that don't have the vision to see what is happening.

Sprint's Upcoming Phone Lineup: It Has to Do Better than That

You must have been sleeping for over a month to have made such claims about Sprint's line-up. IMHO Sprint for the first time has a line-up that is second to none. The Palm Pre & Pixi, the Samsung Moment, the HTC Hero and the Blackberry Tour. With the exception of the Tour, all the aforementioned phones can multifunction using their WebOS or Android operating systems. In relative terms, the growth in Android based or WebOS applications is growing much faster than that of the iPhone and it is only a matter of time before it won't matter whether any OS has 100K or 200K of applications. What will matter is the U/I, feel and quality of hardware and wireless platform. IMHO most of the aforementioned phone can already emulate the iPhone's latest iteration. The Moment has a faster processor (800Mhz), a better screen (AM-OLED), and interchangable battery and an easy to use qwerty keyboard. The Hero has a 5Mp camera, with an interchangable battery. Its hardware is substantially better made than anything to date. We all know what the Pre is capable of and remember it is their first iteration. The Tour is a decent dual mode (CDMA/GSM) Blackberry, which is good for those of us that need to use our phones internationally. Now six months ago Sprint had Zilch in Smartphones that was worthy of mentioning, however their selection has improved so much that you could easily say they have the best selection among all carriers and I am not kidding. Now couple this with their Post Paid Plans and they become untouchable for quality and price. Last but not least, Sprint has TWICE the 3G coverage of ATT and FOURTEEN times the 3G coverage of T-Mobile. You should also note that Sprint is the ONLY major carrier with a 4G platform. They have 17 cities already covered and will be in 25+ cities within six weeks, and 80 cities in 2010.

Verizon Preps Fourth Quarter Device Barrage, Droid Will 'Stimulate Demand'

Sprint already has a 4G platform and it is growing really fast. Verizon won't have their 4G available for another year at best and ATT will have to rely on its lagging 3G network, behind Sprint and VZ, hoping the iPhone can carry them through another year, regardless of their poor 3G coverage. What ATT should fear is that Sprint and VZ are both getting a line-up of phones that will revolutionize the Smartphone world. At the end of this quarter Sprint will have IMHO a line-up of phones that will without doubt level the playing field. Sprint will also have enough 4G coverage
to give it leverage over ATT and VZ, when it comes to speed and dependability. Add this to their Smartphone plans and what you have is a formidable competitor.

How Apple Sets Smartphone Industry Pricing

@Gerrard, when buying a smartphone we like to know that their are no hidden charges. Can you compare Sprint's 'Everything Mobile Plan' at less than $70/month with ATT and Verizon? I think they are substantially lower than the $5 difference you mentioned. Sprint's Everything Mobile Plan includes, Voice/Data/Text/email/... to Talk etc for less than $70/month. ATT and VZ both offer the same service for almost double that of Sprint. Please correct me if I am wrong.

How Apple Sets Smartphone Industry Pricing

Once again Apple is where it is more because of the incompetence of others than its own 'destructive technology.' However, the landscape is changing and the competition has woken up. By tethering itself to ATT Apple has surely handicapped itself, regardless of how well it is currently doing. It is giving the competition enough room to breath and continue launching better and better Smartphones. IMHO there are already a number of handsets that can easily match, if not better, the iPhone in quality and functionality. Case in point, HTC's Hero, Samsung's Moment, both being offered at Sprint. Sprint also offers a much better 3G network and has a substantially wider 3G reach than ATT and T-Mobile combined. The new phones are packed with technologies that are far superior to the iPhone 3GS, such as AM-OLED screens, better camera's and camcorders, removable batteries, faster CPUs, and substantially better hardware. In summary my point is that in the latter 3 yrs. Apple has basically had a free ride and now it will have to contend with a disparate and desperate group of contenders that in many cases will be putting everything on the line. Most of them will have the support of Google's Android OS, which is Linux based, and is well equipped to emulate anything Apple has to offer. On the hardware side Apple basically has no advantages, which can be seen in the recent launchings of numerous manufacturers smartphones. 2010 will no doubt be a facinating year for both the Telcos and the Smartphone manufacturers.

Verizon's Droid Is the Real Deal

The spin from Vz never ceases. Why don't you mention the HTC hero that was introduced last week or the Samsung Moment that will be introduced in 10 days? Both these phones are already better than the iPhone 3GS hands down. Both use Google's Android OS, the Hero has a 5Mp camera, interchangable battery, and substantially better hardware. The Moment has an AM-OLED screen, 800 Mhz CPU, slide out qwerty keyboard and longer battery life. Can some one tell me honestly what the iPhone GS has that is better than both these phones?

Verizon's spin will not make their Android phones work any better than Sprint's. Verizon boasts about their 3G network which has a little more coverage than Sprint's but have little to say about their 4G coverage. Spin doesn't carry much of a punch after you cry wolf too often.

Now let us look at the Android phones at Sprint, the Hero or the Moment, both have better hardware than the best iPhone. Both are run on Sprint's 3G network which is substantially larger and better than ATT's (ATT and T-Mobile combined have less than 40% of Sprint's 3G coverage). Sprint already covers 16 markets with 4G and by the end of this quarter will be in 23 cities in the US. In 2010 Sprint will be the only carrier with a 4G Smartphone running on the WebOS and Android platforms. Now that is awesome! What makes it better is that you will be paying 50% less than what you will be paying ATT and Verizon.

The Real Answer to Closed Carrier Networks Is More Competition

Sprint's foray into Wimax (4G) will definitely change the wireless landscape and open up the industry to more competition. ATT & VZ have been up in arms to hinder the growth of Wimax, however Sprint's Wimax is here and on a glide path to cover the US within a year. The consortium that supports Sprint in this initiative includes Intel, Google, Comcast, Time Warner, Samsung, etc. It will be interesting to see how well LTE's closed system dominated by the large Telcos, ATT and VZ, competes against Sprint and company who are advocating Wimax. By the end of this year Sprint's Wimax will be in at least 25 cities while the competition will be in the same cities paying their Spin Masters to do what ever they can to promulgate misinformation about Sprint and Wimax. Regardless of the proclivity of these Spin Masters from ATT & VZ, Wimax will have far more subscribers in the future than LTE, an alternative standard pursued by the two large telcos. Wimax is far more cost effective, especially if you don't have an existing 3G platform, and we all know this is true in most of the developing world, which is expected to see unprecedented Wireless growth in the coming years.

Palm's Oprah Moment

Look, the truth of the matter is you either hate Palm because it truly challenges the iPhone and has you scared stiff that it might have a chance of displacing the iPhone if it is allowed to evolve and mutate or you love it because it is truly an a step ahead of the iPhone. Its that plain and simple. If you are Short Palm you must also despise the stock so much that you would do anything to cripple its chances because it has caused you nothing but grief. While Cramer and cronies spin their stories on why you should bet against Palm the stock continues to go North.

Palm: Is the End Near?

Head to head I still believe the Pre is a better smart phone than the iPhone. What it lacks in applications it definately makes up in convenience and innovation. On the convenience side it interchangable battery works well for those of us that put our Phones to use and its Touchstone charger is innovative and convenient. Its Multifunctioning and Synergy functions are innovations still lacking from the latest iteration of the iPhone. The GS might have caught up with the Pre's 'cut & paste,' but there are many areas the iPhone GS is still lagging. Now you can continue rebutting me with your extra memory, app store and itunes, however they don't carry much weight. I would never trade access to Amazon for iTunes and the extra memory is no innovation, it is something any carrier can add to their phones.

Palm Raises $313 Million, Bolsters War Chest

Oh, another point of contention is iTunes, well I am sorry to say again that Amazon provides everything on iTunes plus more.

Palm Raises $313 Million, Bolsters War Chest

Day in and Day out, Palm continues to make you iPhone fanatics into fools. Why don't you just go and use the Pre and get a feel for what it can do before you continue making fools out of yourselves, especially those of you that Shorted the stock. The WebOS is probably the best Smartphone platform to come to market, regardless of how much Spin the iPhone fans wish to promulgate. An apropos cliche to most of you burned Shorts would be "oh what a tangled web we weave when we first practice to deceive." This is not to say the Pre is a perfect phone but it unequivocally emulates the iPhone and in some cases it is much better. When my iPhone's battery loses its juice I can do nothing but untie the phone from myself to charge it, however all I need to do with the Pre is change my battery. When my touch screen on the iPhone gets jammed in the process of what I might be doing, I have to close the application and reboot my phone, whereas on the Pre I move to the qwerty keyboard in such a situation. On the iPhone I can only do one thing at a time while on my Pre I can open up numerous applications simultaneously while I am talking. At night I can take picture using my flash on the Pre, but on the iPhone I don't have a flash, hence my pictures are not worth keeping. Yes, the iPhone has 70,000 applications, mind you produced by third party developers, not Apple, however the iPhone has been around for over 30 months whereas the Pre has been around for just over 3 months. Most of those applications on the iPhone will soon be available on the Pre and most Android based phones. So touting the iPhones App. Store won't carry much weight for much longer. My point is be careful with your 'irrational exuberance' over the iPhone and remember what happened to those of us that lost all logic during the .com and real estate boom. Last but not least, the Pre costs only $69/month at Sprint for all your wireless usage, while the iPhone costs $150/month at ATT.