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U.S. Cellular 3
postpaid base, compared to seven percent
at the end of 2009, and smartphones were
25 percent of the total devices sold in 2010,
compared to ten percent in 2009.
This in turn led to greater use of data and a
slight increase in average revenue per customer,
compared to 2009. While the subsidies required
to offer smartphones at competitive prices have
a negative impact on profitability in the short
term, we expect the higher lifetime value of
smartphone customers to outweigh this impact
over the long term.
Ensuring Outstanding Communications
Experiences
U.S. Cellular has the highest call quality and
network satisfaction of any nationwide carrier,
according to Nielsen data. We understand
that the call experience is as important as
the customer service experience, and we
continually enhance our network to ensure
stellar nationwide coverage. To date, U.S. Cellular
has ranked highest in call quality in the North
Central region for 11 consecutive J.D. Power and
Associates surveys.
As more of our customers chose smartphones in
2010 and the use of our data services continued
to increase, we strengthened our capacity and
coverage by upgrading our equipment and adding
366 new cell sites. We completed technical trials
of our 4G/LTE network, and we’re exploring
buildout technologies that provide the highest
quality at an optimal cost. We have access to
sufficient spectrum for our initial network
buildout, and we’re actively supporting the
Federal Communications Commission’s efforts to
make additional sources of spectrum available
and attainable.
Highest Call Quality Performance Among
Wireless Cell Phone Users In North Central
Region, Eleven Times in a Row
– J.D. Power and Associates
Improving Agility and Efficiency
In 2009, we began work on enablement
initiatives designed to enhance our customer
understanding and develop, market, sell and
deliver our services faster and more effectively.
In 2010, we made progress in several areas:
• We selected a vendor to implement our
largest initiative, the Billing and Operational
Support System, which will include a point-
of-sale system and consolidate all billing on
one platform.
• Customers can now activate service and
purchase devices and plans online.
• We’re more effectively targeting
recommendations to customers through
the Enterprise Data Warehouse / Customer
Relationship Management initiative. Future
phases will enable us to collect and analyze
information more efficiently and further
improve customer relationships.
These initiatives are a necessary investment
in our future, and will enable U.S. Cellular to
operate more effectively and efficiently.
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
12/09 3/10 6/10 9/10 12/10
15
17
16
24
40
Smartphones as a Percentage
of Total Devices Sold