Amazon (AMZN) is interested in buying the Boost Mobile MVNO network from T-Mobile (TMUS) and Sprint (S) so that it can get access to T-Mobile's wireless network at wholesale prices (for the next six or so years). It's a pretty brilliant idea (if the price is right). Several pundits are questioning the wisdom of this hypothetical acquisition. To me, it's simple. How powerful would Amazon be if it owned your wireless device when it was always closest to the point of sale (digitally and physically)? The carrier always knows where your phone is; others have to guess (unless you're using their app and have approved transmission of your location).

In the next episode of "Amazon Goes Psycho!", Amazon owns the proxy services layer of a carrier network. Then, they add that intelligence to their existing profiles about you. The result... stay tuned for the next episode of "Amazon Goes Psycho!"

As always, your thoughts and comments are both welcome and strongly encouraged.
 

What if Amazon took Sprint’s place as the US’s fourth wireless carrier?

By Sean Hollister@StarFire2258 May 30, 2019, 9:06pm EDT

Reuters is reporting something rather intriguing and inexplicable on its face: Amazon is interested in buying the Boost Mobile MVNO network from T-Mobile and Sprint, reportedly so that Amazon can have access T-Mobile’s wireless network for a number of years and even purchase some of T-Mobile’s spectrum.

Here are a few of the background facts that make this so intriguing:

• T-Mobile doesn’t own Boost, and won’t even if its merger with Sprint is approved, because Sprint agreed to sell Boost as a condition of the deal.
• Since Boost runs on Sprint’s network, any new owner of Boost would theoretically get access to Sprint’s wireless network, not T-Mobile’s.
• Bloomberg recently reported that the Department of Justice doesn’t want the number of major wireless US carriers to be fewer than four, so it’s asking that T-Mobile and Sprint “lay the groundwork” for an entirely new carrier to emerge for their deal to be approved. That groundwork might involve giving away some spectrum.

So how, exactly, would Amazon buy Boost from T-Mobile, get access to T-Mobile’s network and possibly even some spectrum? Perhaps if Amazon positioned itself as that possible fourth new wireless carrier, pitching itself as the solution to everyone’s woes.

Oh, we are SO deep in speculation territory now.

I’m going to agree with Reuters here: “It was not immediately clear why the largest U.S. online retailer would want the wireless network and spectrum.”

But since we’re already speculating, let’s hazard a guess: Amazon is a gigantic delivery company for all kinds of goods and cloud services, and one that’s been increasingly focused on dealing directly with its customers to the point it’s buying up retail entities like Whole Foods and creating shipping enterprises that rival FedEx and UPS.

I’m imagining my Amazon Prime membership coming with unlimited LTE data now

It makes a certain degree of sense that it might want to own the last mile that connects Amazon’s internet services to its users, too.

Continue reading on the Verge.