AT&T and T-mobile Sign National Roaming Contract

AT&T Wireless and T-Mobile USA have announced a joint roaming agreement, opening up significant new coverage territory for both companies. The companies have also announced an agreement encouraging inter-carrier co-location of network facilities by dramatically reducing cell tower co-location lease costs between the two companies. In addition to lowering costs, this agreement is expected to speed build-out of each company's advanced GSM/GPRS networks.

For AT&T Wireless customers, the roaming agreement provides advanced 1900 voice and data service covering approximately 3,000 highway miles and 12.1 million potential customers in key markets including Minneapolis, MN; Atlantic City, NJ (including along the Atlantic City Expressway); Sarasota, FL; the Delaware/Maryland/Virginia Peninsula; along I-25 from Albuquerque, NM to El Paso, Texas; and, along I-20 in Texas from Dallas to Abilene.

For T-Mobile's customers, the agreement opens up advanced 1900 GSM/GPRS voice and data service in key markets and along more than 2,500 miles of Interstate highways, including AT&T Wireless' coverage along I-40 from the California border to Albuquerque, NM,; I-25 from Denver to Albuquerque; I-80 in Pennsylvania; and I-30 from Texarkana, Texas to Little Rock, AR. Markets include Little Rock; Green Bay and Madison, Wis.; Charlotte, Greensboro and Raleigh, NC; and Knoxville, Tenn. covering more than 10.9 million potential customers.

"On the heels of our roaming agreements with Cingular and Edge Wireless, today's announcement lays another significant plank in the nation's growing GSM coverage map," said John Zeglis, Chairman and CEO of AT&T Wireless. "T-Mobile was an early proponent of GSM, and we are glad to have them as a roaming partner. We're pleased to be able to leverage this additional coverage on behalf of our customers, while providing T-Mobile's customers access to our own next-generation GSM/GPRS highway network."

Financial terms of the agreements were not disclosed. The additional GSM/GPRS 1900 coverage provided by the roaming agreement is expected to be available this June for both companies' customers. AT&T Wireless and T-Mobile expect to begin implementing the reduced co-location rent agreement in the second quarter of 2003."

Posted to the site on 24th April 2003