OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (BUSINESS WIRE), March 17, 2014 – Sprint (NYSE:S) today announced 20 new 4G LTE markets, bringing faster data speeds to customers in such locations as Bridgeport/Stamford/Norwalk, Conn.; Myrtle Beach, S.C.; Omaha, Neb.; Peoria, Ill.; and Sarasota/Bradenton, Fla. Sprint expects to cover 250 million people with 4G LTE by mid-year. Sprint today also announced Sprint Spark™ in Provo, Utah, and Trenton, N.J, as well as the upcoming availability of HD Voice.
Sprint Spark is an enhanced LTE service that’s built for data and designed to deliver peak wireless speeds of 60Mbps today on capable devices, with the potential for speeds three times as fast by late next year.1 With its unique combination of network technologies, spectrum capacity and tri-band devices, Sprint Spark is designed to greatly improve the performance of video and other bandwidth-intensive applications, including new generations of online gaming, virtual reality and advanced cloud services. It enables stutter-free video chat on-the-go and mobile gaming that leaves lag behind.
HD Voice is also now available to customers in Provo, and will soon be available in Trenton. HD Voice is a new Sprint standard for mobile phones where background noise is virtually eliminated and sound quality is dramatically enhanced.2 HD Voice is designed to provide a better experience than a landline. A typical phone without HD Voice offers four octaves of sound, but a phone with HD Voice offers seven (10 octaves is considered perfect hearing).
“Sprint’s all-new network is providing our customers significantly better call quality and faster data speeds in more places,” said John Saw, chief network officer at Sprint. “Customers in Provo and Trenton will be particularly pleased with the power of Sprint Spark – say goodbye to slow downloads and content that lags.”
Sprint’s nationwide 4G LTE network now reaches the following 20 new markets:
| Bakersfield, Calif. | Lancaster, Pa. | Omaha, Neb. | Shawnee, Okla. |
| Bridgeport/Stamford/Norwalk, Conn. | Mason City, Iowa | Peoria, Ill. | Trenton/Ewing, N.J. |
| El Centro, Calif. | Myrtle Beach, S.C. | Provo/Orem, Utah | Visalia/Porterville, Calif. |
| Hot Springs, Ark. | Nogales, Ariz. | Sarasota/Bradenton, Fla. | Willimantic, Conn. |
| Kenosha, Wis. | Ocean City, N.J. | Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Pa. | Zanesville, Ohio |
Sprint 4G LTE, available in 402 cities, also provides benefits to customers of Sprint’s prepaid brands – Boost Mobile and Virgin Mobile USA.
Sprint Spark is available in the following 18 cities: Austin, Texas; Baltimore; Chicago; Dallas; Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Fort Worth, Texas; Houston; Jacksonville, Fla.; Kansas City, Kan./Mo.; Los Angeles; Miami; New York; Philadelphia; Provo, Utah; Salt Lake City; San Antonio; Tampa, Fla; and Trenton, N.J.
Sprint Framily Plan
Innovation at Sprint is not limited to advances with the network. Customers with Sprint Spark-enabled devices can select the new Sprint FramilySM Plan – a pricing program available to new and existing customers that lets consumers decide who they consider family. The more people added to the group, up to 10 phone lines, the greater the savings for everyone on the plan. Build a group of at least seven people and everyone gets unlimited talk, text and 1GB of data for $25 per month per line (pricing excludes taxes and surcharges). For only $20 per month per line, Sprint Framily Plan members can buy up to unlimited data, and they are eligible for a new phone every year. Unlimited features are while on the Sprint network.
