Sprint poised to become 'king of data speed,' report says

The TDD spectrum in the 2.5 GHz band that Sprint acquired from Clearwire is "a powerful resource for Sprint to catch up to its competitors" and can enable the United States' third-largest mobile operator "to provide super high speed data connections," according to a report from Strategy Analytics.

The report, written by Guang Yang, Strategy Analytics' senior analyst for wireless networks and platforms, further notes that Sprint's 2.5 GHz spectrum is key to enabling the operator to become the "king of data speed." Sprint has said it owns around 120 MHz of 2.5 GHz spectrum in 90 percent of the top 100 US markets. By deploying LTE, operators are moving to an IP architecture that makes it easier to hack because it's a familiar territory for hackers.

However, the research firm's report may not have been issued at the most opportune time for Sprint. The Federal Communications Commission has been reviewing the spectrum screen it uses when assessing industry mergers and acquisitions and whether spectrum caps are needed in the upcoming 600 MHz auctions in order to equalize spectrum holdings among US mobile operators.

Sprint has contended that its vast holdings of 2.5 GHz BRS and EBS spectrum should be not be compared directly to lower band spectrum held by the nation's two largest operators, AT&T Mobility and Verizon Wireless. For example, in February, Sprint proposed the FCC adopt a "weighted wireless broadband spectrum screen" that would accord perceived competitive advantages to spectrum under 1 GHz.