Wireless Telecommunications Services

The US wireless telecommunications services industry includes about 3,000 companies with combined annual revenue of more than $185 billion. Major companies include the four national wireless carriers: AT&T, Verizon, Sprint Nextel, and T-Mobile USA (an indirect subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom). The industry is highly concentrated: the 50 largest companies generate more than 90 percent of industry revenue.

The industry includes companies that operate wireless telecommunications networks and related facilities. Companies that resell wireless telecommunications services are not included in the industry.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Demand for wireless services is driven by consumer income and innovative service offerings. The profitability of individual companies depends on marketing and customer service. Large companies have advantages in marketing and in delivering a comprehensive array of services nationally. Small companies can compete effectively by delivering economically attractive service packages tailored to niche groups regionally. The industry is capital-intensive: average annual revenue per employee is more than $900,000.

PRODUCTS, OPERATIONS & TECHNOLOGY

Major services provided include voice telephony (ordinary cell phone service); messaging (voice, text, image, and video); Internet access; music and video distribution; and ringtone distribution. While voice telephony traditionally has dominated wireless network traffic, data is expected to surpass it.

Cellular communications networks consist of a series of low power base transceiver stations (BTS) interconnected through a regional base station controller (BSC) to a mobile switching center (MSC). The BTS, or cellular tower, consists of a set of antennae mounted on a tall structure ...