At Apple’s unveiling of the new iPhone 4S, Apple CEO Tim Cook also announced a new contract with Sprint as an addition to iPhone carriers. Sprint executives hope this addition will boost their bottom line and promote interest in the third largest U.S. wireless provider.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Sprint’s stock dropped a faltering 20 percent in one day as a result of Sprint’s difficulty raising cash to build a new 4G wireless network system, called Long Term Evolution. Sprint Chief Financial Officer Joe Euteneuer said that Sprint would be cash flow negative for the next two years due to the construction of the company’s new network.
Sprint executives hope that the iPhone will solve their problems. Sprint CEO Dan Hesse said, “”Our expectation is [that the iPhone] will be most profitable device we’ve sold. We expect this to be quite accretive to our cash flow over time,” according to an article by CNN’s David Goldman.
Sophomore Amina Smith, a letters and sciences major who has Sprint service, said she couldn’t wait to get the iPhone.
When asked whether or not the iPhone would help Sprint’s economic problems, she said, “I hope. I don’t want to change carriers. I like my service, it’s cheap.”
“AT&T and Verizon have had great success with the iPhone so I don’t see why Sprint wouldn’t either,” said Alex Ramsay, a sophomore letters and sciences major with Verizon service. “I think Sprint will start making more money and earn the money back that they are losing now from constructing their new wireless network.”