WiMax available in 27 markets and 30 million customers

Dec 11, 2009 13:45 GMT  ·  By

Sprint Nextel Corp. named Matt Carter, currently the president of its Boost Mobile prepaid unit, as the new chief of the 4G department, where he will oversee the company's fourth-generation wireless broadband service. The Overland Park-based carrier said that Carter, vice president for Sprint’s fast-growing prepaid segment, would start in his new role as 4G President beginning with January next year.

Dan Schulman, former CEO of Virgin Mobile USA, now the president of Sprint's prepaid department, will manage Carter's Boost Mobile team after January 11, 2010. “Matt Carter has led Boost Mobile prepaid service to unprecedented growth in the last year, and he has the executive and marketing skills to maximize Sprint’s industry leadership in 4G,” Sprint CEO Dan Hesse said.

According to the carrier, Carter came to Sprint in 2006 as the base management's senior vice president, and was named president of Boost Mobile in 2008. Prior to joining Sprint, he held key executive positions for various companies, such as Chief Marketing Officer at First Network Bank and Leap Wireless International, as well as Senior Vice President, Marketing for PNC Financial Services Group.

Aside from the position he has at Sprint, Carter is also on the Board of Directors of Inbrics Company Ltd. He owns an MBA degree in business administration from the Harvard Business School and a BS degree in TV, radio and film from the Northwestern University. Carter was one of the most powerful people of 2009 according to FierceWireless.

With a total number of more than 48.3 million customers, Sprint is the 3rd wireless carrier in the United States. Available in over 27 markets across the nation, the 4G technology was first tested and launched by Sprint, providing speeds of up to ten times higher than the ones offered by 3G. The company plans on delivering Sprint 4G to over 120 million people by 2010.

Access to Sprint's 4G services can be enjoyed through the 3G/4G USB Modem U300 the carrier sells. The device combines the benefits of both networks, the company says: 3G speeds on “America’s most dependable 3G network” and highly superior 4G speeds in areas where the service was introduced.