T-Mobile must meet this FCC test by Q1 2026 or return spectrum to the FCC

An analyst at RBC Capital, Jonathan Atkin, follows the publicly held and traded tower companies such as American Tower. These firms lease cell towers to U.S. wireless providers like T-Mobile, Verizon, and AT&T. As a result, Atkin gets a good look at what is happening in the industry. He recently downgraded American Tower to Sector Perform from Outperform and said that carrier activity was quiet through the third quarter of 2025 which ended last week.

Analyst calls T-Mobile the “most active” carrier as it tries to meet FCC spectrum requirements

Atkin called T-Mobile the “most active” U.S. carrier when it comes to spectrum. The wireless provider is rushing to meet significant FCC requirements related to the 3.45GHz spectrum licenses it won in FCC Auction 110. In that auction, held in 2022, the carrier spent close to $3 billion for an average of 21MHz of airwaves. The FCC is requiring that T-Mobile meet certain requirements in order to keep the spectrum. In what is known as a “use-it-or-lose-it” condition attached to the spectrum won at auction, T-Mobile must meet certain requirements by March 2026.

T-Mobile must show the FCC by March 2026 that it is providing the 3.45GHz spectrum to at least 45% of the population within the coverage area of each license it holds. By March 2029, that requirement rises to 75% of the population covered by each license. Should T-Mobile fail to meet the March 2026 mandate for a particular license, that license, or a portion of it, reverts back to FCC control and can be put up for auction again.

Verizon’s master lease agreement will expire soon allowing it to seek a reduction in lease costs

Atkin says that in order to meet the target, T-Mobile is using colocations and amendments. With the former, instead of putting up its own tower, T-Mobile rents space in an existing tower owned by a third party and uses that space for its cellular gear such as antennas, base stations, and radios. Colocation is much faster to deploy and time is of the essence here. Colocation is also less expensive for carriers than shelling out the cost to build a tower.

Picture of T-Mobile's promotional triple-layer 5G cake mix.

T-Mobile promoted its triple-layer cake 5G airwaves by giving away a Supercharged 5G layer cake mix in 2020. | Image credit-T-Mobile

As for Verizon, Atkin says that the largest carrier in the U.S. is focusing on mid-band spectrum coverage and capacity. Verizon also has started a high-rent relocation program in an attempt to lower lease costs. American Tower is the wireless provider’s largest landlord and with the master lease agreement expiring inside of two years, Verizon is expected to focus on relocating to lower-priced tower leases.

As for AT&T, the RBC Capital analyst notes that AT&T is right on schedule with its plan to modernize its network. The company is currently replacing its Nokia gear for equipment made by Ericsson.

T-Mobile has been accused of hoarding its 2.5GHz spectrum

T-Mobile has been accused at times by Verizon and AT&T of hoarding spectrum. In 2023, AT&T said that T-Mobile was buying airwaves it didn’t need just to keep them out of the hands of its rivals. AT&T and Dish. Both firms said at the time that the FCC should limit the amount of spectrum that one company could buy. The accusations against T-Mobile dealt with the 2.5 GHz mid-band spectrum.

Instead of using mmWave spectrum to start building out its 5G network as Verizon and AT&T did, T-Mobile deployed the 2.5GHz airwaves it targeted in the acquisition of Sprint. While the mmWave spectrum used by Verizon and AT&T is faster than the mid-band spectrum that T-Mobile used, it also travels shorter distances which severely limited coverage of mmWave 5G signals and slowed Verizon and AT&T‘s 5G buildout. As a result of using the 2.5GHz spectrum, T-Mobile became the early U.S. leader in 5G.

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T-Mobile must meet this FCC test by Q1 2026 or return spectrum to the FCC

Analyst calls T-Mobile the “most active” carrier as it tries to meet FCC spectrum requirements

Verizon’s master lease agreement will expire soon allowing it to seek a reduction in lease costs

T-Mobile has been accused of hoarding its 2.5GHz spectrum

“Iconic Phones” is coming this Fall!

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