T-Mobile Is Shutting Down Sprint’s 3G Network – What This Means for You

T-Mobile acquired Sprint in 2020, assimilating the wireless carrier’s customer base along with the company’s aging 3G CDMA network. After keeping this network alive for more than a year, the wireless carrier is taking the final steps to shut down this near-abandoned network.

Though T-Mobile has not officially announced the sunsetting of Sprint’s 3G CDMA network, a leaked internal memo obtained by T-Mo Report hints the network will go dark on Jan 1, 2022.

The memo details not only when but how it will handle customers on Sprint’s 3G CDMA network.

One of the biggest concerns is moving customers from the 3G CDMA to network to its up-and-coming 5G network. Not surprisingly, T-Mobile plans to introduce various offers that’ll encourage customers to buy a new phone and switch over to the carrier’s 5G network.

T-Mobile has already started reaching out to customers who are still using a 3G CDMA phone. The carrier is starting with customers who are on a contract or own their own device. T-Mobile will continue to expands its email campaign until all 3G customers are notified.

While the focus now is on its regular customers, T-Mobile last year alerted business customers in December 2020 of this imminent shutdown. The company confirmed to its lucrative business customers that it would be turning off Sprint’s 3G network in approximately a year. This 12-month lead time was meant to give businesses plenty of time to acquire new devices and move their employees to T-Mobile’s 5G cellular service.