AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile officially launch joint venture to end dead zones

Back in May, AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile announced "an agreement in principle" to create a joint venture that would strive to end dead zones across the US. Today, almost five months later, that joint venture has finally been officially launched.

Paul Roth will serve as interim CEO of the new company while an active search is underway for a permanent CEO. Roth previously held several leadership positions at AT&T, Cingular Wireless, and Ameritech. The joint venture will be managed by a board of representatives from each of the three carriers.

Its aim is to "nearly eliminate" dead zones in the US, reaching previously unserved areas, provide reliable redundant connectivity in emergency situations, and to improve network performance in general, while giving customers simpler access to satellite services across providers.

Through combined investment by the three carriers via the new joint venture, provider options for satellite connectivity will expand, and, as a first step, direct-to-device access will improve. This will "enhance competition as consumer choices grow in satellite service", the official press release states.

More satellite service providers will gain opportunities to "compete, invest, and grow" and the joint venture will work with rural mobile network operators to enable them to bring new products to market for their customers.

In the end, the three carriers hope that "user experience will improve on satellite networks, with a standards-based approach to development involving operating system providers, mobile app developers, and original equipment manufacturers". Existing satellite connectivity agreements will remain in place and the three carriers will also "continue connectivity efforts independently".

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