{"id":52796,"date":"2020-02-18T07:52:39","date_gmt":"2020-02-18T12:52:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.portada-online.com\/?p=52796"},"modified":"2021-04-09T13:47:41","modified_gmt":"2021-04-09T17:47:41","slug":"t-mobile-sprint-5-things-vendors-need-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.portada-online.com\/feature\/t-mobile-sprint-5-things-vendors-need-to-know\/","title":{"rendered":"T-Mobile-Sprint: 5 Things Vendors Need to Know…"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/a><\/p>\n After the T-Mobile and Sprint merger, the new company now is officially one of the three U.S. telco giants. The merged entity will manage around 100 million direct customers\u00a0<\/strong> (excluding\u00a0 wholesale users), around the same level as Verizon (116 million) and AT&T (93 million). Retail store wise , T-Mobile-Sprint has approximately 9,300 stores<\/strong> (Sprint 4,000 and T-Mobile has more than 5,300 stores.)<\/span><\/p>\n AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile-Sprint will very likely face a fourth major player: Dish. Part of the reason why the DOJ (Department of Justice) approved the merger is that Dish may be able to join AT&T, Verizon and Sprint as a fourth player, therefore increasing competition<\/strong> (and marketing dollars). The DOJ, in seeking to create a viable fourth wireless carrier, insisted Dish be allowed to sell a 50 percent stake<\/strong> to strategic investors as long as they do not include T-Mobile and Sprint rivals like AT&T, Verizon or cable companies including Comcast, sources explained. As importantly, the DOJ approved the T-Mobile-Sprint merger, because Dish, recently bought Sprint prepaid brands Boost Mobile and Virgin Mobile.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Both Sprint and T-Mobile spent approximately US $2.7 billion in advertising together in 2019<\/strong>, according to their annual reports. In 2019, T-Mobile U.S. spent approximately US$ 1.6 billion<\/strong>\u00a0on advertising, while Sprint expenses totaled $1.1 billion<\/strong>, $1.3 billion, and $1.1 billion for each of the years ended March 31, 2019, 2018, and 2017, respectively. (Competitors Verizon and AT&T spent US $ 2.64 billion and US $3.52 billion<\/strong> in advertising last year.) Sports and entertainment event sponsorships are another extremely important channel for telco marketers. In 2017, AT&T spent between US $195 and US $200 million in sports and entertainment sponsorships, according to sponsorship.com<\/a>. Similarly, Verizon spent between US $160 and US $165 million, and T-Mobile between US $50-55 million.<\/strong> Sprint did not make it to the top 50 sponsorship investors in 2017<\/strong>. While Sprint was a 2019 Super Bowl advertiser, it did not advertise in the last Super Bowl two weeks ago<\/strong>. T-Mobile did with its spot promoting its nationwide 5-G network (see below).<\/p>\n Portfolio Expansion with stronger local ties<\/strong>1. T-Mobile and Sprint Merger = One of the Three Telco Juggernauts\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n
… Competition (Need for Marketing) Continues to be Huge…
\n<\/strong><\/h3>\n… Currently: US $2.7 Billion in Advertising Expenditures<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\nWith US $8.56 billion, Telco was the third largest ad-category after retail and automotive (Statista). The U.S. telecom<\/b> industry was expected to increase its digital ad spending by 16.2%<\/strong> to $13.45 billion in 2019.<\/strong> (E-Marketer). In 2018,\u00a0 AT&T was the second-largest U.S. advertiser<\/strong>, Verizon the 10th largest with T-Mobile (23) and Sprint (39).<\/p>\n2. Sponsorships: Expansion of Sponsorship Portfolio with Emphasis on Local Properties<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\nWe expect the combined company to expand its sponsorship portfolio (Major League Baseball, T-Mobile Arena, American Music Awards, etc.) with ties to local properties in new and underperforming markets.<\/p>\n