Sprint and Altice USA announced today that they have agreed to a partnership. The partnership will allow Altice USA to use Sprint's network to provide cellular service for its customers throughout USA. Sprint will in turn get to leverage Altice USA's broadband platform to accelerate the densification of its network.
According to the official press release, this is a first of its kind type of agreement.
"In this first of its kind agreement, Sprint will provide Altice USA with access to its full MVNO model, allowing Altice USA to connect its network to the Sprint Nationwide network and have control over the Altice USA mobile features, functionality, and customer experience. In exchange, Altice USA will leverage its network to support Sprint’s network densification efforts and establish a differentiated network operating model going forward."
Altice USA is one of the nation’s largest broadband communications and video service providers, providing internet, TV, WiFi and phone products under its Optimum, and Suddenlink brands. The company also has over 26 million mobile customers throughout Europe and other parts of the world including France, Portugal, Israel, and the Dominican Republic.
Altice USA's Chairman and CEO Dexter Goei had the following to say about the deal:
"Working together we will be able to capitalize on Sprint’s vast mobile network, which fits well alongside Altice USA’s deep WiFi network, and leverage Altice’s global mobile experience to deliver greater value, more benefits and seamless connectivity for our U.S. customers."
From Goei's comments it would seem that Altice USA's MVNO service may end up being a hybrid cellular/Wi-Fi offering similar to how Google's Project Fi and Republic Wireless operate.
No time frame was given as to when the service will launch.
Sprint's President & CEO Marcelo Claure was of course also excited about the deal and commented:
"Sprint has more spectrum and capacity than any other carrier in the U.S. This is a tremendous advantage, allowing Altice USA customers to experience our best-ever network that offers the speed, capacity and reliability that customers demand in this data-driven world. This agreement also gives us a unique opportunity to accelerate the work we are doing to massively densify our network across Altice’s U.S. footprint."