According to the latest reports, US telecommunications operator AT&T has formulated its latest strategy and announced financial expectations through 2023. The clear message is a return to core communication capabilities, and investment will be particularly focused on fiber and 5G mobile networks.
At the heart of the new strategy is the WarnerMedia-Discovery merger expected to close in the second quarter of this year, a move AT&T Chief Executive John Stankey said would put the company “on the starting line of a new era” while it Standing at the “dawn of a new era of connection”.
Explaining how a large post-merger divestiture with Warner will affect the company, John Stankey said: “The transformation we have undertaken over the past 18 months has brought us to this point while delivering excellent operational results. One step. We’re going to be a simpler, more focused company with a vision to be the best broadband provider in America.”
He said, “We plan to increase investment in our key growth areas – 5G and fiber. At the same time, we will continue to focus on developing customer relationships, continuously improving our execution to enhance customer experience, and for our shareholders. Bringing growth and returns…as new business models emerge that require pervasive, high-performance connectivity, we’re ready to deliver.”
AT&T’s ambition is to take on the challenge of rivals like Verizon and become “the best broadband provider in America.” To achieve this, AT&T says it will build a best-in-class fiber-based network and own and operate both fiber and wireless, and it’s so-called “owner economy” brand will provide greater flexibility in More places offer higher quality broadband to businesses and consumers.
Going forward, AT&T plans to double its fiber network coverage to more than 30 million locations, an increase based on customer location locations in the second quarter of 2021. This includes tripling its corporate customer premises locations to 5 million. By doing so, the company expects to increase coverage to 3.5 million to 4 million customer premises locations annually.
The company also hopes to enhance its 5G network by deploying 120MHz of mid-band spectrum and reach more than 200 million Americans by the end of 2023. The mid-band spectrum will support faster speeds, higher capacity and lower latency, and complement the company’s existing 5G coverage, which covers more than 255 million people in more than 16,000 cities and towns.
AT&T also believes that its ability to offer symmetrical product offerings to consumers and businesses, as well as its expansion into underpenetrated SMB customer segments, presents an opportunity for it. The company says these customers want reliability, speed and simplicity, and AT&T is confident in delivering all three: a reliable fiber and 5G network with the fastest fiber speeds in the U.S., and the simplicity that comes with an easy-to-understand pricing experience.
AT&T also develops software products on top of its network connections and works with partners to develop new services for businesses. These include network edge services through a partnership with Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud; 5G private network services that provide a cellular private network seamlessly integrated with a nationwide macro network for enterprises, universities or the public sector; and online and offline services at the moment Products that provide secure, reliable network connectivity in mixed work environments.