Monthly Archives: March 2007

According to the Associated Press, Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel Corp. are introducing a BlackBerry e-mail phone that’s compatible with the cellular technology more common in other countries in addition to the standard used on their own U.S. networks. One key difference between the Verizon and Sprint versions of the new BlackBerry 8830 is that Sprint’s will be ”unlocked,” enabling customers who take the device abroad to buy wireless service in other countries through other carriers. Verizon’s 8830 is locked so that it can only be used overseas through Verizon’s roaming service.

The new phone is a variant of the 8800 line introduced in February by BlackBerry maker Research in Motion Ltd. through AT&T Inc.

RIM developed the dual-mode capability to suit Verizon’s and Sprint’s circumstances.  Both companies use what some experts consider a superior wireless technology known as CDMA. But the vast majority of the world’s cellular networks run on a standard called GSM.  As a result, where GSM-based carriers such as AT&T and T-Mobile USA can easily offer phones that work overseas, Verizon and Sprint haven’t had many options for their customers who travel abroad.

Though a dual-mode phone is an obvious solution, the drawback is the cost of adding more complex components and the engineering challenge of jamming them into a handheld device without making it bulky.  Verizon said it locked the new BlackBerry as part of its emphasis on ensuring network quality for customers, this time outside the United States.  But that policy disables one of the most popular attributes of GSM phones, all of which feature a slot for a removable, postage-stamp sized card that stores a user’s account information.  The ability to remove that card, called a SIM, enables a user to buy multiple GSM phones and use whichever one suits the occasion.

More importantly in this case, GSM also enables a traveler to use a single phone, but buy wireless service from different providers in different countries. Then, by slipping the appropriate SIM into the phone in a given country, the user can cut back on the steep international roaming fees charged by carriers.

Vodafone Group PLC, which owns 45 percent of Verizon Wireless, will be providing much of the overseas roaming service for Verizon’s 8830. So by locking the BlackBerry 8830 to only work with a Verizon SIM, those two companies will be sure to capture the revenue from any calls made with the device from another country.

But what about Sprint Nextel? Long desirous of a international solution, does this signal something greater for the perennial stepchild of U.S. wireless carriers?  Are they looking for an international acquisition to complement their very good U.S. coverage?  Or maybe Sprint is the acquisition target.  There are many international partners that would compliment Sprint Nextel’s significant footprint in the U.S.  What about Orange and NTT DoCoMo?  Both would complement the other’s respective coverage well.  NTT DoCoMo has long wanted a U.S. presence and with Sprint Nextel, they get a large swath of valuable U.S. wireless spectrum in which to build out their 3G and 4G services…something that the Japanese market has long outpaced that of the U.S. in usage and capabilities.