As we had originally reported last week, AT&T and Verizon have delayed 5G rollout on the C-Band spectrum for a month. We’ve now learned that T-Mobile could be capitalizing on this moment to gain a larger lead on 5G service availability over its competitors. You see, unlike AT&T and Verizon, T-Mobile is not broadcasting over any frequencies that are suspected of causing interference (including Sprint’s repurposed 2.5GHz/ 2500Mhz WiMax band).
The delay helps T-Mobile lock in 5G customers before Verizon and AT&T have improved their coverage, Blair Levin, an analyst with New Street Research, said in a note. “A one-month delay will not have a material impact,” Levin wrote. “But the question remains whether the delay will continue to a point at which it will hurt Verizon and AT&T while benefiting T-Mobile.”
Despite the delay however, Verizon appears to remain optimistic about providing C-band coverage to millions of Americans by early 2022 (according to Rich Young, a spokesperson from Verizon). Mobile carriers have permission to use the C-Band beginning Dec. 5. The FCC awarded wireless network providers access to the radio bands in a February auction. Verizon spent $45 billion on the airwaves in question, and AT&T devoted $23 billion in an FCC auction. With this data, and news according to an article by Forbes recently, it seems that T-Mobile is on track to likely profit from this delay.