On our sister site, we talk about Leap Wireless, as Cricket Wireless, a good deal. For those of you unfamiliar, they’re a regional carrier which offers unlimited calling plans for flat monthly rates. They and MetroPCS compete with this service scheme on a prepaid basis. We know that Leap was upset about the way the 700 MHz auction turned out, with Verizon eating up the C Block, and AT&T picking off smaller licenses, implicitly intended for regional and new carriers. Now they’re upset about the Alltel-Verizon merger, and want the move blocked by the FCC, according to Reuters.
As a regional carrier, Leap is concerned about roaming agreements. They don’t have a nationwide network, and rely on the networks of Verizon and Alltel to fill those holes. They have agreements with both, but they don’t include data. Because Leap has been rolling out a number of Advanced Wireless Service markets, which include EVDO data, it would be in their best interest to secure data roaming agreements.
Verizon has said that once the deal is complete, any company which has roaming agreements with either company can keep them. Further, if they have roaming agreements with both, they can keep the ones with the better terms. Since these agreements do not include data, it’s Leap’s thinking that they never will.
This seems like the basic cat and mouse game between big player and small player. Big player wants the government to be hands off, so that it can go about its business as usual. Small player wants the government to step in and level the uneven playing field. Both arguments have a level of merit. What happens in the end, though, is anyone’s guess.
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