Verizon recently snapped up a war chest full of 28 GHz and 39 GHz spectrum licenses in its $1.05 billion Straight Path buy, and it seems that move was quite timely - not just because of 5G.
In a Monday research note, BTIG's Walter Piecyk reported Verizon recently began turning up the remaining 10 MHz of its PCS spectrum in New York City. While that's a good strategy for meeting increasing traffic demand, Piecyk observed the move comes earlier than expected and leaves Verizon with just 20 MHz of open spectrum for LTE in that market. But those 850 MHz airwaves, he noted, are currently tied up delivering CDMS voice and 3G data services. At least 10 MHz of that is expected to continue to serve those functions for the next several years, Piecyk said.