4G is in Trouble

AT&T had to give up the acquisition of T-Mobile.

LightSquared is almost out of money, says Reuters. 

Clearwire needs money – not only to build out the two 4G networks it has promised to Sprint (WIMAX and LTE), but to continue operating.

VZW has been quietly buying up all the AWS and other spectrum it can get, which – if it gets through the DOJ and the FCC – would be devastating to everyone but VZW. If the cablecos actually start bundling VZW with their triple-play, as Forbes is betting, Clearwire – and subsequently Sprint – could be in trouble. 

The top 4 cablecos account for most of the consumer broadband and a huge swash of the US. Partnering with VZW – which seems so weird to me – means that

Sprint has MVNO deals with Cbeyond, TelePacific and XO. It used to have a deal with Pivot, a cable consortium. (I think EarthLink is also with Sprint.) It needs more. It needs CenturyLink and Windstream to be an MVNO customer. So does T-Mobile.

At this point, LightSquared has other issues besides money; they have GPS interference issues to deal with.

Clearwire just needs money to build and run. It needs customers who sign on for a minimum buy. T-Mobile could be one of them. So could WIND and C-Link.

Meanwhile, DISH is quietly fiddling with its spectrum plans. No idea what they will do.  But except for VZW, right now, 4G in the US is a mess, which directly impacts our economy.