U.S. Wireless Carrier Data Services 4Q08-4Q09 QView Summary and Analysis

This IDC update provides a high-level view of the quarterly results generated by IDC's U.S. Wireless Carrier Data Services 4Q08-4Q09 QView. IDC's QView provides coverage of the data services and content types offered to customers by the top 10 wireless carriers, with consideration of subscriber/customer base and an aggregated view of the rest of the market for 4Q08-4Q09. Standard industry operating metrics - including subscriber/customer totals, net additions, ARPU, churn, capital expenditures, service revenue, and minutes of use - for the operations of U.S. carriers are used as a framework to support IDC's evaluations and assessments of individual carriers, as well as the current state of the wireless data services market overall.

The QView product includes a fairly granular comparison of the data services and content types currently offered by AT&T, Verizon Wireless, Sprint Nextel, T-Mobile, Alltel, U.S. Cellular, TracFone, Virgin Mobile, MetroPCS, and Leap Wireless. IDC also provides an estimated aggregate view of tier 2 and 3 regional and local carriers, such as Qwest and scores of others, as well as industry averages and totals by which the performance of service providers may be objectively compared. Also included in this update is a Beyond the Numbers section and insight into the methodology used to create the U.S. Wireless Carrier Data Services QView.