Hasta La Gadget!

In each issue of Distro, editor-in-chief Tim Stevens publishes a wrap-up of the week in news.

A bit of a lull this week ahead of what is shaping up to be an insane May — and perhaps an even crazier June. We have events stacked three-deep at times, with industry ones like Google I/O, BlackBerry World, CTIA and SID Display Week looming along with private ones like Microsoft’s next-generation Xbox unveiling. Next month? WWDC and the Electronic Entertainment Expo, just to name a few. Giddyup.

This week, we got what should be the final dredges of first-quarter earnings, with Facebook reporting $1.46 billion in revenue. That’s a 38 percent increase over this quarter last year and a healthy $312 million in profit. Daily active users are also up, from 526 million to 665 million and, perhaps most importantly, Facebook managed to increase the performance of its mobile ads. That will be the key to its long-term success.

Filed under: Misc, Wearables

Comments

Now that the MetroPCS/T-Mobile merger has been finalized, many customers on MetroPCS are all wondering, “When can we get our hands on the iPhone?” Well according to T-Mobile CEO John Legere, there is a possibility that the iPhone will head to MetroPCS, however nothing is certain yet. He says, “It’s not imminent; I think that’s safe to say.” He does assure MetroPCS subscribers that he has started discussions with Apple about bringing the iPhone to MetroPCS.

Bringing the iPhone to MetroPCS doesn’t seem like an unrealistic dream, because Apple has already allowed several prepaid carriers, like Virgin Mobile USA and Cricket Wireless, to sell the iPhone on their networks. Ironically, the prepaid carriers were able to sell the iPhone even before T-Mobile, the 4th largest carrier in the United States, was able to get its hands on it.

But before T-Mobile can bring the iPhone to MetroPCS, it has other plans to focus on first. Starting next month, T-Mobile plans on releasing devices that have the MetroPCS logo, but will be working off T-Mobile’s network. By doing this, T-Mobile would be able to quickly migrate customers off of MetroPCS’s network and onto its own. Then it can begin refarming MetroPCS’s spectrum to deploy its 4G LTE network.

But Legere emphasizes that this move is about “customer migration, not network integration.” With MetroPCS-branded phones working on T-Mobile’s network, T-Mobile plans on expanding MetroPCS’s brand into more markets. T-Mobile plans on bringing MetroPCS to several new markets both this quarter and next quarter. The list of markets is said to be in the double-digits, with T-Mobile deciding this week which cities its going to hit first.

By the time 2014 rolls around, T-Mobile hopes to stop losing subscribers and start gaining subscribers. So far Legere says that T-Mobile’s new uncarrier plans have been well-received, and that its numbers have exceeded their expectations. Most of it is likely due to T-Mobile finally launching the iPhone last month. T-Mobile reported that there were lines outside every T-Mobile store in the nation, with customers eagerly hoping to finally be able to use the iPhone on their carrier. If you’re on T-Mobile, and are thinking about picking up an iPhone 5, be sure to check out our iPhone 5 review to see if it’s worth the switch.

[via AllThingsD]

iPhone might head to MetroPCS, just not anytime soon is written by Brian Sin & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

The T-Mobile USA and MetroPCS merger is final, with the new T-Mobile US combo-brand set to hit the New York Stock Exchange today. The combined carriers amass a total of 43m subscribers, with 200m potential customers set to be covered by LTE service before the year is through. By bringing together the individual spectrum holdings, however, T Mobile US says it’s in an even better position for its 4G roll-out in 2014 and beyond.

However, it’s the potential for industry-disrupting price plans and off-contract service that CEO John Leger believes will really help the carrier stand apart. “Together, as America’s Un-carrier, we’ll continue our legacy of marketplace innovation by tearing up the old playbook and rewriting the rules of wireless to benefit consumers” he said today.

The deal is expected to also save both carriers money, with a potential saving of $6-7bn; there’s also the potential for pushing the MetroPCS brand into more areas, taking advantage of T-Mobile’s spectrum. MetroPCS’ shareholders approved the deal late last month.

While T-Mobile USA and MetroPCS may now be living happily under the same roof, for subscribers there won’t be much in the way of difference based on what they see on their phone screen, at least. The two brands will be operated separately, though eventually shift to a common network infrastructure, and sharing support.

T-Mobile US born as T-Mo and MetroPCS merge is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

The other day we reported that the shareholders of MetroPCS have given the T-Mobile/MetroPCS merger their blessings to proceed. We were also wondering if at that time would the deal be able to conclude in time as originally scheduled, which was targeted for completion around mid-year. Surprisingly it seems that despite a tiny setback from their shareholders, the CEO of Deutsche Telekom, the parent company of T-Mobile USA, has announced that the merger has been made official and will officially take place on the 1^st of May! According to the statement:

We have accomplished a lot in the USA recently, for example our network modernization and the new T-Mobile USA management team, which has seen considerable success. And we have finalized the contracts with Apple and MetroPCS. The merger with MetroPCS is extremely important, since it enables us to be more aggressive in the USA.

We’re sure that customers of both T-Mobile and MetroPCS are eager to see what sort of new deals that they can benefit from based on this merger, but we guess we will probably have to wait until the 1^st of May before the details are revealed! In the meantime, any T-Mobile/MetroPCS subscribers out there excited by this merger?

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Custom Lightsabers Will Make You Really Feel Like A Jedi, Smart Pajamas Use Dots To Read Bedtime Stories On Your iOS, Android Devices,

By now, you’re probably aware that MetroPCS shareholders voted in favor of a merger with T-Mobile, and with regulatory red tape out of the way, both companies are now set to become one on April 30th. Now, MetroPCS has laid its Q1 2013 financials bare, which provides us with an excellent peek at T-Mobile’s future partner. First off, the company is making money, and its operational income is actually rising, but it’s also dealing with increased costs from loans, taxes and the like. Overall, MetroPCS reported a net income of $19.4 million for the first quarter, which is down from $21 million just one year ago.

Speaking of loans, MetroPCS has a ton of them. Its liabilities now sit at $10.3 billion, and its managed to take on $3.4 billion in financing during the last year alone. From a balance sheet perspective, 75 percent of the company’s assets exist as debt, and this is a burden that T-Mobile must now take on. Naturally, much of this merger was in effort to score additional spectrum, but Ms. Magenta also stands to gain 9 million new customers once the deal completes, 39 percent of which are LTE subscribers. Better yet, with a churn rate of 2.9 percent, they’re sticking around now more than any previous time in company history.

Filed under: Wireless, Mobile, T-Mobile

Comments

Source: PR Newswire