MetroPCS to launch prepaid LTE and avoid subsidies

Flat-rate prepaid operator MetroPCS's LTE-service-offering strategy appears to resemble that of Clearwire's WiMAX offering.

During the company's fourth-quarter earnings call, MetroPCS CEO Roger Linquist indicated MetroPCS will sell big buckets of broadband access on a month-to-month basis with no contract and no subsidy of the device. The operator announced in September that it selected Ericsson as its primary infrastructure vendor for the LTE network and Samsung as the supplier of its first LTE handset. The operator, known for its flat-rate pricing, is planning to offer LTE services in its major markets this year, selling a dual-model LTE/CDMA handset initially from Samsung, which won't likely arrive until  2011. The operator's goal is to introduce as many as five dual mode devices in the next 18 months.

 "We believe there can be a renaissance in the no-contract wireless service segment as 4G becomes readily available," Linquist said during the company's conference call with analysts.

For more:
- see this Connected Planet article

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