AT&T blasts Sprint for using roaming rules to support 'massive disinvestment' in its own network

AT&T is coming out swinging over some material changes to Sprint's network in Oklahoma and Kansas that will see it shut down some of its own coverage in favor of roaming agreements with CDMA competitors.

Specifically, AT&T cites two policy changes on the Federal Communications Commission's part that have enabled Sprint's move: first, the end of the Home Market Rule, which prevented carriers from establishing roaming agreements in markets where they owned their own spectrum; second, its decision last year to require carriers offer high-speed data roaming in addition to voice. It seems an odd thing for AT&T to get worked up over, save for a couple important things: one, the intent of the roaming rule was to allow rural carriers to compete on even ground, and two, it only stands to reason that a carrier holding spectrum should be required to exhaust it before turning to roaming agreements in a given market. As AT&T senior VP Bob Quinn says, "Sprint can now use other folks' networks rather than pony up its own investment dollars. Nice work if you can get it."