T-Mobile For Sale - One Way Or Another

T-Mobile USA is becoming like the guest who was invited to a party out of courtesy by the host who didn't think he would really show but did nonetheless. The alpha carriers are there. AT&T and Verizon are just dominating the party. Sprint is there too but it's more of a sidekick. T-Mobile is vying for attention but gets polite nods and uneasy smiles.

Well, not that I'm speaking from experience or anything like that but T-Mobile USA, besides being my favorite wireless provider and the first to partner with Google to come out with the first Android device, is quickly being shunned, even by its German parent company. So much so that it may be forced to go independent in an IPO or something worse. Worse isn't the right word here.

Noq, I've got an interesting proposition. What if one of the cash rich giants buy it out? It's the weekend so let's have some fun with this unlikely scenario, shall we?

Okay, Google. It clearly needs to be a two-trick horse. It's trying to make money from something else other than search and going into this wireless providing business makes sense. And it can attract a lot of loyal customers from other carriers in the process. I think it'll gain more than it'll shed.

Microsoft. Doesn't have the close relationship it once did with T-Mobile. Still, it has a lot to offer. The only bad thing is that its house is in disorder despite making $6.7 billion in profits last year. But imagine if Redmond finds itself a coherent mobile strategy, it can do something no one else has done. More likely, Steve Balmer will drive customers away instead. Less likely to buy T-Mobile than Google.

Now, Apple. You can forget about it. But it is a good scenario to consider. Okay, not. Imagine just selling one phone and one pad, maybe a few 3G-enabled laptops and that's all you can choose from.

So, it'll be back to Google. Google buying up T-Mobile makes more sense than either Apple or Microsoft pulling the trigger. The main thing is that Google wants to dominate search, specifically mobile search so it can sell ads. It won't mind other mobile platforms running on it's own network so long as it can earn a piece of the action by being the default search engine on the phones that it'll sell.

Plus, owning its own network can insure Android and Chrome OS's future in the mobile market. No one else can do this. Furthermore, such a buy could force others like Microsoft to emulate this maneuver by buying a more expensive network like Sprint or something. Make your enemy waste resources, right?

Plus, there's something that Google has been pushing hard on. White spaces. Look for a national wide white spaces network along with 3G and LTE networks that it'll own. It can essentially provide services to hundreds of millions of people with cheap Internet access. And as some had hope in the past, Internet access subsidized by ads.

So, what to you think? I think it can work.

Note: I'm picking up on this because of T-Mobile being the first network to offer the G1. Up until Android devices started showing up at Sprint and Verizon, T-Mobile was synonymous with Android and Google.

Android Netbooks

Android would be a perfect OS for a netbook, wouldn't you think?  Okay, maybe not today given how I've bitched about the G1 and the beta feel to Android.  In fact, I've been getting quite a bit of app crashes of late.

But once a netbook manufacturer like Asus or Acer can get Android to work properly with power management, add a full  web browser like Chrome, you can be looking at a really mean and lean mobile platform that is competitive with the XP and Linux offerings on the market today. 

Once an Android netbook hits the market, users will already have access to hundreds if not thousands of apps available.

And good thing going for netbooks with Android.  Google has a good relationship with Sprint and is a WiMax supporter.  I wouldn't be surprise if the first Android netbook will support WiMax out of the box.  And if you didn't already know, Google is a white spaces backer. 

Today seems to be netbook days as I've posted at Onxo about a potential Apple answer to the netbook segment of the laptop market and Acer teaming up with ATT in providing subsidized netbooks.  But the trend is clear.  Mobility.  Wireless.  Googleness.  Well, the last one is a bit subjective and biase on my part.  So again, why Android netbook?

• Strong alternative to XP. 
• Made for mobility.  That means speed, power saving features, portability.
• Google apps - this is especially useful for folks who live and die by Google.
• Apps already available.
• Cloud computing with Google. 
• Push mail, Android marketplace, support for Google Docs
• Wireless connectivity.  Wi-Fi, 3G, WiMax, white spaces, LTE. 
• An expanded market for developers
• Light weight device with great flexibility.