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Judge will reportedly approve Sprint / T-Mobile merger tomorrow
A push by several state attorneys general will reportedly not be enough to stand in the way of a merger between T-Mobile and Sprint. The Wall Street Journal and New York Times cite sources saying that tomorrow a US district judge is expected to rule in the companies favor, allowing them to go through with the deal after the Department of Justice gave its approval last fall, and the FCC signed off in November.
T-Mobile and Sprint can now verify calls across their networks
Today, T-Mobile and Sprint are rolling out number-verification to customers across both networks. Using the STIR/SHAKEN standards recommended by the FCC, the carriers hope to better fight robocalls. Ideally, this will make it harder for spammers to spoof numbers and give customers more confidence that the number calling them has not been ripped off by a robocall.
FCC: Wireless carriers violated federal law by selling location data
The FCC has finished investigating carriers' unauthorized disclosure and sale of subscribers' real-time location data, Chairman Ajit Pai has shared with (PDF) lawmakers in the House of Representatives. In his letters, he told Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. and others that the agency has come to a conclusion after an extensive probe: one or more carriers "apparently violated federal law." Pai has also promised the lawmakers that the agency is going to take action against the offending carriers to ensure that they comply with laws that protect consumers' sensitive information.
Study finds five major US carriers vulnerable to SIM-swapping tactics
A Princeton study (PDF) has discovered that five US prepaid carriers use authentication techniques that are vulnerable to SIM-swapping tactics. The researchers signed up for 10 prepaid accounts each on AT&T, T-Mobile, Tracfone, US Mobile and Verizon Wireless for a total of 50. They found that they only needed to successfully answer one thing to verify their identity and get the companies to switch their service to a SIM card they already have. It didn't even matter if they got the other authentication challenges wrong.
Sprint is shutting down Virgin Mobile ahead of planned T-Mobile merger
Sprint is getting ready for its planned T-Mobile merger by axing one of its prepaid brands. The telecom is shutting down Virgin Mobile service and will transfer all customers to Boost Mobile starting the week of February 2nd. You'll keep your phone and number in "most instances," and will move to a "comparable or better" plan at no additional charge. Your mobile broadband device won't carry over, though, and you'll have to change your payment options if you rely on either PayPal or 45/90-day top-ups.
Pixel 4 gets improved Face Unlock and other surprise updates
Earlier this month, Google announced that instead of regular Android updates, Pixel 4 devices would get a "Pixel Feature Drop" to show off splashy new features. That update has now arrived, and on top of expected changes like robocall screening and Duo call centering, there are a few welcome surprises, as spotted by XDA Developers and Android Police.
Apple, Google and Microsoft sign letter backing Paris Agreement (updated)
The Trump administration may already be pulling the US out of the Paris Agreement, but a large chunk of the tech industry wants the country to stay in... with some glaring exceptions. The CEOs of many companies, including tech giants like Apple, Adobe, Google, HP, Microsoft and Tesla, have signed a United For The Paris Agreement letter calling on the US to remain part of the effort to keep climate change in check. They argued that the international pact would "strengthen [US] competitiveness" by helping it lead the way in technologies that will usher in an eco-friendly future. It also sets "clear goals" that help with planning and spur innovation, the companies said.
T-Mobile's 5G network goes live ahead of schedule
Last month, T-Mobile promised its 5G network would go live in 5,000 cities and towns on December 6th -- if its merger with Sprint went through. That deal is not yet final, but today, a few days ahead of schedule, T-Mobile says it's launching its nationwide 5G network. The catch is that, for now, T-Mobile is offering 600 MHz "low-band" 5G.
Texas backs out of the lawsuit to stop the T-Mobile and Sprint merger
Texas no longer stands in the way of the T-Mobile and Sprint merger. The state has reached a settlement with T-Mobile, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced today. In exchange for T-Mobile's commitment to build a 5G network throughout Texas, Paxton will drop the lawsuit he filed in August in an attempt to block the $26.5 billion deal.
T-Mobile confirms customers' personal data accessed in hack
It's been a rough month for customers who care about their privacy, with data breaches affecting businesses as diverse as high-end department stores, camgirl websites and online domain registrars. Yet another cybersecurity issue has allowed hackers to access data about prepaid customers of popular US and European telecom brand T-Mobile, as revealed by blog TmoNews.
Verizon's 5G coverage maps are here, and they're sparse
Seven months after it first launched its 5G network in the US, Verizon (Engadget's parent company) has shared coverage maps for all 18 cities in which it currently offers next-generation wireless connectivity. The maps were first spotted by PCMag, and make it clear why the carrier was likely reticent to share them in the first place. Outside of the downtown cores of dense cities like Chicago and New York, there's not much to see at the moment. Take the map of Sioux Falls, for instance -- it's fair to describe Verizon's deployment in the city is modest at best.
John Legere is stepping down as T-Mobile CEO next April
The sun is about to set on the John Legere era at T-Mobile. On Monday, the carrier, the third-largest in the US, announced that current president and COO Mike Sievert will take over as CEO on May 1st, 2020. The announcement comes after the FCC approved the T-Mobile and Sprint merger earlier this month -- though it's not a done deal yet with a group of state attorneys general still opposing the merger.
CNBC: T-Mobile CEO John Legere won't be the next WeWork CEO
Earlier this week T-Mobile CEO John Legere's name popped up as a possibility to take over the top spot at WeWork after its failed IPO and ouster of co-founder Adam Neumann. However, subsequent rumors clarified that he was just one of the potential replacements, while today CNBC reports that Legere isn't taking the job and has "no plans" to leave T-Mobile. The report also cites people with knowledge of the matter as saying he was not the top candidate for the job, which would have presented a tricky transition as Softbank is both the majority owner of WeWork, and Sprint, which his company is still in the process of merging with.
WeWork may have found its new CEO: T-Mobile's John Legere
WeWork's series of trials and tribulations has been one of the biggest business stories of the last few months. Co-founder Adam Neumann exited as CEO in September, then SoftBank bought a majority stake in the troubled co-working company after WeWork's failed attempt at an IPO. WeWork might already have a new chief executive lined up, though: T-Mobile CEO John Legere, whom the Wall Street Journal reported is in talks to take over.
Cross-carrier glitch sent people ancient texts in the middle of the night
Did you wake up to a resurrected Valentine's Day text message on your phone? You're far from the only one. Numerous users have reported receiving old text messages overnight, all of them from February in one year or another (often around Valentine's Day) -- and frequently messages that didn't initially reach their destination. The zombie texts appeared across multiple carriers, including the top four US networks as well as Canada, and surfaced whether you were using an Android device or iPhones. There appears to be an explanation, although there's still plenty of mystery.
T-Mobile teases $15 5G plan and other post-merger initiatives
When, and if, it launches its 5G network on December 6th, T-Mobile will offer a new $15 per month prepaid 5G plan to customers. The plan will include a 2GB per month data allowance, in addition to unlimited talk and text. At $15, the plan is half the price of T-Mobile's current cheapest plan. For $25 per month, customers can upgrade to a plan with 5GB of monthly data. Additionally, T-Mobile says it will add 500MB of data to both plans every year for up to five years.
T-Mobile's 5G network will go live on December 6th
T-Mobile will officially activate its 5G network on December 6th, the carrier announced today during a live stream dedicated to its upcoming merger with Sprint. According to CEO John Legere, 200 million customers will have access to the network on day one, with 5,000 cities and towns covered before the end of 2019.
FCC formally approves the T-Mobile-Sprint merger
Today, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) formally approved the T-Mobile-Sprint merger. The decision comes after a drawn-out, and at times contentious, review of T-Mobile's $26.5 billion bid to merge with Sprint.
AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint and Verizon team up to push next-gen RCS texting
For years we've been hearing about the potential of RCS, a protocol replacement for SMS that would bring iMessage and Whatsapp-like features to texting. Unfortunately there's been very little to show for it, with spotty support among carriers, and only Google and Samsung showing any real movement. Today the big four wireless carriers in the US -- AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon (parent company of Engadget) -- announced their "Cross-Carrier Messaging Initiative." It's a joint venture that they promise will "Create a single seamless, interoperable RCS experience across carriers, both in the U.S. and globally."
OnePlus 7T Pro with 5G is coming to T-Mobile later this year
OnePlus wasn't entirely accurate when it said it wouldn't offer the OnePlus 7T Pro in the US. T-Mobile has announced that it'll carry the OnePlus 7T Pro 5G McLaren sometime later in 2019. As the name suggests, it's a version of the supercar-inspired special edition phone with 5G data on T-Mo's 600MHz network. There's no pricing at this point, although you can safely presume this will cost much more than the $669 starting price for the earlier 7 Pro.
