That's where you are wrong. Back in the ye old days when there was only Ma Bell, today we have Vericrap, Sprint, and a slew of several local/regional operators.
They would have been enough to maintain AT&T on its feet. Simple. AT&T Next was going to happen, where T-Mobile did it or not. Same with DataShare plans.
You're totally wrong if you think AT&T would've done Next, or any of their other reactionary moves of this year if not for T-Mobile.
Do you really think that with a GSM monopoly in tow and 30 million customers more than their nearest rival in Verizon, AT&T would have:
- Launched a good BYOD low-price option of AIO Wireless
- Launched AT&T Next to offer more frequent upgrades
- Lowered the MRC by $15 for customers who use Next (this one would definitely have never happened)
- Purchased LEAP Wireless to further strengthen their prepaid footprint
If you really think AT&T would've taken such moves that would have cut into their bottom line while they possessed a GSM monopoly then you're absolutely wrong about the way these carriers work. They don't do anything to benefit the consumer unless they have to or are pushed to do so by a competitor. There was no mention of phone financing or frequent upgrade programs among VZW, AT&T, or Sprint until T-Mobile took the risk and tested it on the market and the other 3 saw that it was working, and in the case of JUMP (the program that inspired Next), even making additional revenue. That's the way competition works my friend, not consolidation or monopolies. If you recall, AT&T and VZW even said they didn't think removing subsidies was going to work on the US consumer so they would watch T-Mobile and react if necessary. Well Next, Edge, and $15 off MRCs are their reactions so far. The only part that they were going to do this year regardless of T-Mobile was launch data sharing plans because those are more lucrative to the carrier rather than benefiting the consumer.