Leap Shutters Some Stores, Reduces Headcount

Today sources cited by the Wall Street Journal indicated that MetroPCS has hired J.P. Morgan Chase in order to help it with a possible acquisition of Leap Wireless. Leap Wireless recently hired a banking firm (Goldman Sachs) to help ...
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Leap Wireless CEO Doug Hutcheson said that the company is interesting in extending its existing 3G wholesale agreement with Sprint to include Long Term Evolution 4G. "We're very willing to look at that - we don't see a single strategy of only doing it ourselves," said Hutcheson. Leap currently resells Sprint's 3G services under the Cricket brand in markets where it doesn't provide its own coverage. Including LTE in their wholesale deal could save Leap Wireless a considerable amount of money, as it would otherwise have to acquire more spectrum to expand its own LTE footprint.

Leap Wireless is on target to launch its Long Term Evolution network late this year, but doesn't plan on bringing any LTE-equipped devices to the market until the second half of 2012. Leap CEO Doug Hutcheson cited cost as the major reason for the delay. "We think devices will really hit critical pricing in the second half of 2012," he told Mobile Business Briefing in an interview.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Leap Wireless and MetroPCS have been unable to reach an agreement that would lead to a merger of the two low-cost wireless carriers. The two companies have been exploring a possible merger since ...
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Leap Wireless today announced that the Samsung Chrono is available starting today for $59.99 at Cricket retail stores. The Chrono is an entry-level flip phone that includes Bluetooth, speakerphone, VGA camera, dual displays, and GPS.

Leap Wireless has acquired the remaining portion of LCW that it didn't already own for $3.2 million. LCW is a small regional carrier in the Pacific Northwest that was a partnership between Leap and CSM Wireless. It covers about 3 million POPs in the Portland, Salem and Eugene, Ore., markets. Earlier this year, Leap has boosted its ownership stake in LCW with a $21 million investment.

Leap Wireless today voiced its opposition to the proposed AT&T acquisition of T-Mobile. "A competitive marketplace is critical to wireless innovation -- and small and mid-sized carriers such as Cricket are driving that innovation," said Doug Hutcheson, President and CEO of Leap and Cricket. "The proposed acquisition would eliminate T-Mobile as an important nationwide competitor in the industry.

Leap today announced that its operating subsidiary, Cricket Communications, will buy network time wholesale from Sprint. The five-year arrangement will let Cricket offer its new lineup of products and services across the country on Sprint's 3G network. Cricket will ...
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