Verizon Wireless this week continued its spectrum spending spree, swapping spectrum licenses with Leap Wireless for about $200 million.
As Verizon celebrated the first anniversary of its 4G LTE network today, meanwhile, it confirmed that the rumored Xyboard Droid tablets will be available next month.
Under the deal, Leap will purchase 12 MHz of 700 MHz A block spectrum in Chicago from Verizon Wireless for $204 million. Verizon in turn will buy PCS and AWS spectrum in various U.S. markets from Leap for $188 million.
Leap said the purchase will supplement the 10 MHz of spectrum it currently owns in the Chicago area and help it deploy 4G LTE.
Meanwhile, a Leap-controlled venture known as Savary Island Wireless will sell AWS spectrum in various markets to Verizon Wireless for $172 million. Savary will use those funds to pay off its debt to Leap's Cricket Wireless.
"Together, these transactions will allow us to strengthen our spectrum position in our Chicago market and receive net cash proceeds of more than $100 million, after repayment of indebtedness and estimated transaction fees," Doug Hutcheson, Leap's president and chief executive officer, said in a statement.
"We plan to use the net cash proceeds to support our ongoing deployment of LTE network technology," Hutcheson said. "As we have previously announced, we plan to cover approximately two-thirds of our current network footprint with LTE technology over the next two to three years."
Last month, Leap said it was on track to launch a trial run of its 4G LTE network by the end of the year, reportedly in Tucson, Arizona. LTE-based smartphones from Leap are not expected until mid-to-late 2012.
The move comes days after Verizon paid three of the nation's top three cable companies $3.6 billion for 122 spectrum licenses in the AWS band. As part of the deal, Comcast will get $2.3 billion for the spectrum, Time Warner will get $1.1 billion, and Bright House will get $189 million.
That extra spectrum will come in handy as more and more users switch to data-intensive devices like smartphones and tablets. Two devices that will take advantage of that 4G LTE network will be the Xyboard Droid tablets from Motorola, coming out this month, Verizon confirmed today. News of the devices first leaked last week; they are reportedly re-branded versions of Motorola's 10-inch Xoom 2 and 8-inch Xoom 2 Media Edition tablets.
Verizon today is celebrating the first anniversary of its 4G LTE network, which is now available in 190 markets, up from 38 at launch. PCMag gave the network high praise during our 2011 Fastest Mobile Networks test: "We found that Verizon's new 4G LTE network is much faster than other mobile Web options, with speeds that often exceed home Internet connections," PCMag analysts concluded.
Verizon's network now has some competition from AT&T, however, which just launched its 4G network in several cities. For more, see AT&T vs. Verizon: LTE, Head-to-Head.
AT&T, however, is currently fighting to acquire T-Mobile, which AT&T claims will help it deploy that 4G LTE network. The Department of Justice has sued to stop the merger, and the FCC has also said it is not in the public interest.