T-Mobile to Offer Voice over IP Calling

Not yet….

But with the purchase of $4.2 Billion in wireless spectrum, T-Mobile has put themselves in a great position to not only increase their cellular marketshare, but also start to offer additional services such as VoIP and WiFi.

A Probe Financial report on the T-Mobile spectrum purchase contains some interesting thoughts on what impact this purchase could have on T-Mobile’s communications offerings.

“T-Mobile has been an also-ran in the U.S. mobile market,” states Al Boschulte, Chairman of Probe Financial Associates, Inc. “No more. Not only is it evolving into a credible player, it will soon have the ability to launch truly disruptive strategies.

“I look for T-Mobile to accelerate its network development plans, build on its leadership position in WiFi, and do an end-run around the dominant competitors, Verizon Wireless and Cingular,” Boschulte added. “This could have major impacts not only on WiFi but on the development of UMA (unlicensed mobile access), wireline-to-wireless conversion and the outlook for many other companies, including telcos, cable, Sprint and others.”

When someone starts talking disruptive strategies and end-runs around larger competitors I start thinking about VoIP, WiFi, IPTV, and the likes. With T-Mobile’s parent company Deutsche Telecom already offering a dual-mode telephony solution in Germany T-Mobile’s current HotSpot offerings across the US, and their US test of a dual-mode telephony solution in Seattle I have no doubt that T-Mobile can execute on bringing dual-mode telephony and other distruptive technologies to the US.

With the purchase of $4.2 Billion in spectrum, T-Mobile now has all of the pieces in place. T-Mobile has positioned themeselves to have the ability to roll-out disruptive technologies to the mass market. I remember when T-Mobile launched GSM in the US with some highly competitve plans. At the time I was part of one of their new market roll-outs and I can tell you they had comeptitors scared. Imagine the fear they would strike into their competitors with the launch of VoIP calling (with dual-mode phones), alongside an expanded, nationwide WiFi offering (for home internet access) that utilizes a docking station where-in your dual-mode phone acts as the access point, and why not add IPTV to that as well. I believe T-Mobile, more then any other communications company in the US, is the one who will make much of what we inside the industry always talk about happen.

How soon this will occur is still up in the air, but I would look for a big roll out of a dual-mode telephony solution, based on the test market in Seattle in the next six months to a year.