T-Mobile Buying US Cellular for $4.4B, Wants to Improve Rural Coverage

T-Mobile has built its network to have amazing speed and capacity in all major US cities. If you live in an urban area, T-Mobile is probably a good option as a provider. However, as you get a bit more rural, that same network tends to fade and you may find yourself having to go for a different provider such as Verizon. With T-Mobile announcing its plans to acquire US Cellular, it’s looking to beef up its rural offering in a quick manner.

• Related: Customers react to T-Mobile price increase.

Just a week following T-Mobile’s news that they are raising prices on select legacy plans, the news is out that T-Mobile is going to pay $4.4 billion to acquire US Cellular, the country’s fourth largest carrier. I’m not entirely sure who runs the optics department over there at T-Mobile, but yeah, could we have picked a worse time?

In a press release, a lot is mentioned about tower leases and how T-Mobile plans to improve its rural offering, but when we read the following about how this purchase will benefit the American consumer by providing “more competitive choices,” I about spit my coffee out.

T-Mobile’s purchase and integration of US Cellular’s wireless operations will provide more competitive choices for US Cellular customers, as they will benefit from T-Mobile’s greater resources and ability to provide lower prices, more robust plans, and a better network experience. Access to T-Mobile’s 5G network, enhanced by US Cellular’s spectrum and tower assets, will provide immediate value to US Cellular customers through better coverage, speed and access to T-Mobile’s “Un-carrier” benefits including content offers, additional savings for seniors and robust customer service options.

I wholeheartedly expect the purchase to benefit existing US Cellular customers, as well as T-Mobile customers who travel or live within rural areas that US Cellular’s network performs better in. However, it must be agreed to that if T-Mobile is gobbling up yet another carrier, that doesn’t equate to there being more “choices” for consumers. By definition, it’s the opposite.

This transaction is expected to close in mid-2025, subject to the usual regulatory approvals which is all hogwash and doesn’t mean anything anyway.

// US Cellular