T-Mobile might be selling the BlackBerry Bold 9900 to customers for $299 but one of our tipsters let us know about a program T-Mobile is running for BlackBerry developers. Developers can get the BlackBerry Bold 9900 for $199.99 for a limited time after a $50 mail in rebate. T-Mobile did something similar in the past together with RIM for previous devices so its nice to see them continuing. The offer for developers expires on November 1st 2011 and requires a 2 year agreement though they nicely waive the $35 activation fee. No word on if this offer is also good for users who are upgrading.
AT&T is prepared to make sacrifices in an effort to sway the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Communications Commission in favor of its planned $39 billion acquisition of T-Mobile, Reuters reported on Friday. On August 31st, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against AT&T in attempt to block the merger, a move that is said to have caught both AT&T and T-Mobile USA’s owner, Deutsche Telekom, off-guard. “AT&T is pretty determined that they can find a solution, and they are pretty confident,” one source told Reuters, which noted AT&T’s “two-track” plan that includes possibly selling off as much as 25% of T-Mobile, including customers and spectrum, if the deal is approved. It is still unclear who could be a potential customer for the assets, however, as the government could investigate Sprint or Verizon Wireless if either carrier chose to purchase those assets. Reuters said U.S. District Judge Ellen Segal Huvelle will preside over the case and said Huvelle is known for moving swiftly. AT&T has asked for an expedited hearing and the case could be heard within the next two months.
Now that the US government has moved to block its merger with T-Mobile, AT&T is gearing up for a long and potentially pricey legal battle with the Department of Justice. According to Reuters, however, the provider is also working on a settlement offer, in the hopes of bypassing the courtroom altogether. Sources close to the matter say AT&T will soon present its proposal to antitrust regulators, who are concerned that the company’s purchase of T-Mobile may hinder market competition. Details on the proposal remain vague, though it will likely include promises to keep T-Mobile’s low-cost data and calling plans, along with pledges to sell off some of its own assets. But some insiders say the carrier may have to sell up to 25 percent of T-Mobile’s business in order to put regulators’ minds at ease. AT&T has yet to comment on the report, though one of Reuters‘ sources claims that its lawyers are “pretty determined that they can find a solution, and they are pretty confident.”
We knew this day was coming, so there are no surprises here. BlackBerry’s latest addition to its portrait QWERTY family, the Bold 9900, is on sale now at T-Mobile stores. The chrome trimmed, 14.4Mbps HSDPA capable handset’ll run you $350 (before a $50 mail-in rebate) with a two-year commitment, or you can always fork over the full $600 if you’d rather steer clear of the carrier’s contract chains. In case you were in need of a refresher, the phone packs a zippy 1.2GHz processor, 2.8-inch capacitive touchscreen and runs BlackBerry 7 OS. Feeling like it’s time to update your crackberry habit? Then head to the source below to get your order on.
You heard right. Bloomberg is reporting that the United States government (!) just filed court papers in Washington, D.C. to block the much ballyhooed tie-up between AT&T and T-Mobile USA. Oddly enough, T-Mobile and AT&T promised this morning that a total of 5,000 jobs would be hand delivered to the US if the two telcos were allowed to become one, but it’ll take a heck of a lot more convincing now. For what it’s worth, this doesn’t mean that the deal is or isn’t happening — it’s just another step in the process — but it most certainly doesn’t bode well for proponents. Nor for AT&T’s share price.
AT&T said on Wednesday that it promises to bring 5,000 of its outsourced call center jobs back to the United States if its proposed $39 billion acquisition of T-Mobile USA is approved by the FCC. AT&T also promised that it will not layoff any AT&T or T-Mobile call center employee who is employed at the time of the merger. In addition, AT&T will invest $8 billion in its U.S. infrastructure and the Economic Policy Institute has suggested that move could provide up to 96,000 new jobs. AT&T made its announcement hours before the United States Justice Department filed a lawsuit in an attempt to block the merger. “AT&T’s elimination of T-Mobile as an independent, low- priced rival would remove a significant competitive force from the market,” the Justice Department said. AT&T responded and said that “there was no indication” from the DOJ that a lawsuit was being contemplated. “We remain confident that this merger is in the best interest of consumers and our country, and the facts will prevail in court,” AT&T Senior Executive Vice President and General Counsel Wayne Watts said, noting that AT&T will continue to fight for the merger’s approval.
Hey T-Mobile fans, if you’ve been itching for the BlackBerry Bold 9900 to launch, your wait is over! You can head on over to the website and grab yourself one for $299 (after $50 mail-in-rebate) on a 2-year contract with appropriate data package. Suggested retail is $599 if you’re looking to buy one outright.
Now all of the major US carriers have the BlackBerry Bold 9900 or 9930 available, except for AT&T, of course.
Being a consumer these days is already hard enough with all this HSPA+ / 4G nonsense we have to deal with. Having to deal with inaccurate packaging and inaccurate information does nothing to help this situation. We’re sure this is just a slip up, but realistically these days these things shouldn’t happen. How this ever got approved for store shelves we’re not sure — but one thing is for certain, and as much as it hurts to say it, T-Mobile will need to pull these devices or at minimum the boxes off the shelves.
Though it’s not exactly the most shocking news — considering the devices are now officially announced and we’ve been seeing them for a while anyway, some fresh pics of the BlackBerry Curve 9360 have now appeared. The images come from a T-Mobile meeting of employees held today where some product knowledge was dropped and they got to go hands-on with the devices. Still no release date for T-Mobile version but we’re expecting that shortly.
Well T-Mobile took their sweet time with this one but now it is official. They just sent us the launch details for the BlackBerry Bold 9900 with the launch date pegged for August 31st. There is also an expected pre-sale of the Bold 9900 to T-Mobile business customers starting August 17th. The real kicker is that the 9900 will be selling for $299.99 after a $50 mail-in-rebate card. That is a serious case of sticker shock for the discount wireless carrier.
Also worth noting is a new preloaded app called T-Mobile MobileLife Family Organizer powered by Cozi. It offers centralized calendars, shopping lists, to-do lists, and family journals that allow family members to share updates with each other on the go. More details at www.t-mobile.com/calendar.
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