T-Mobile (US) adds QPP and expands agency plan options

T-Mobile expanded its Connecting Heroes public safety agency program with its first set of rugged devices, additional paid plan options, and new Quality-of-Service, Priority, and preemption (QPP) capabilities. The announcement also served to amplify the company’s 5G message to prospective and current public safety customer agencies.

The US mobile network operator launched the first iteration of Connecting Heroes in May 2020. The 2020 offer gives qualifying public safety agencies free voice, text, and LTE/5G data service. Data is unlimited but subject to constraints on mobile hotspot usage and video speeds. A second plan, the $15 per month Connecting Heroes Amp offer, provides 20 GB of hotspot data and unlimited HD streaming. These free or low-cost plans are aimed at agency users and not individual first responders. T-Mobile provides an additional set of plans for first responders not supported on an agency plan.

Details of the June 2021 changes include:

• QPP to protect public safety network access and traffic: User devices operating on a Connecting Heroes plan will now gain preemption in addition to the Quality-of-Service and Priority capabilities offered with the start of the program. The combination provides a complete set of Quality-of-Service, Priority, and preemption (QPP) features. Quality-of-Service is being provided as a matter of network policy. 3GPP Release 12 QCIs are not identified as service enablers.
• QPP is linked to DHS Wireless Priority Service (WPS): The Connecting Heroes plans are first responder agency plans. When an agency is enrolled for WPS, the agency’s users gain the access and preemption benefits for data access. The Quality-of-Service and Priority capabilities do not require WPS registration.
• Devices enter the offer: T-Mobile now offers three devices, with the Sierra Wireless MG90 5G router available immediately and two Cat handsets coming in summer 2021. The Cat handsets, a Cat S62 smartphone and a rugged Cat flip phone, are exclusive to T-Mobile.
• Expanded paid plan options: Three new paid Connecting Heroes plan options join the original free and Amp plans. These new rate plans take effect 23 June 2021, but all Connecting Heroes plans are no longer documented on the T-Mobile business website. While noting that the three new plans offer a Samsung 5G device included in the price, the company does not disclose pricing or the plan's data capabilities.

Beyond the changes to Connecting Heroes, the press release served as a good reminder that T-Mobile offers a set of Magenta First Responder plans for first responders that pay for their personal service. These plans provide discounts for first responders and their families, regardless of any agency plan participation.

Ecosystem Impact

• Now matching AT&T FirstNet and Verizon Wireless QPP: In broad terms, the addition of policy-based Quality-of-Service, Priority, and preemption functionality brings T-Mobile onto a level playing field with its prime competitors for government emergency services offers. This feature addition fills in an enormous gap in capabilities.
• No mission-critical push-to-talk (MC-PTT): Verizon and AT&T provide the 3GPP network support required to groom specific signaling and bearer traffic serving mission-critical push-to-talk/data/video applications. The T-Mobile announcement remains silent on the topic.
• 5G performance will be hard to ignore: The ample 2.5 GHz T-Mobile gained from the Sprint acquisition will make a marked competitive difference. Propagation in 2.5 GHz bands is superior to the bands above 3 GHz. This coverage difference means that AT&T and Verizon will require denser cell grids to match Sprint’s performance.

End User Impact

• Protection against network overload: QPP will ensure agency users supported on the Connecting Heroes plan get access to the network at times of network congestion. During disasters, network resources are stressed as network equipment is destroyed or consumers swamp the network with call attempts. End users should remember that 5G does not yet have the same level of overload protection that LTE offers.
• Better support for command vehicles: The Sierra Wireless MG90 provides an excellent platform for vehicles with multiple internet connections. It supports a local vehicle LAN and multiple LTE/5G modems. While ideal for command vehicles, mobile vehicle routers are gaining traction in patrol vehicles equipped with video cameras. Likewise, emergency medical units benefit from a consolidated vehicle IP data system.
• Resilience from redundancy: LTE and 5G coverage vary widely. Moreover, these networks do occasionally fail. T-Mobile’s service capability expansion makes its network a viable option for agencies that require secondary wireless links in vehicles for comprehensive coverage and boosted resilience.
• T-Mobile mid-band 5G brings benefits for traffic going down from network: The most significant advantage that 5G brings is the addition of new spectrum “highway lanes.” T-Mobile holds a large chunk of spectrum in the 2.5 GHz band, and with 5G, the company can offer the efficiencies that 5G brings when large continuous bandwidth is available. The 5G New Radio operation in a band with excellent propagation characteristics will translate to high capacity supporting data operations.
• T-Mobile low-band 5G means little: 5G has new features that will make a difference in coming years for low latency and high reliability. However, these features remain in the distant future, and 5G does not bring significant benefits in the lower bands supported by T-Mobile. End users should not expect the Extended Range 5G performance to be materially different than what LTE delivers.
• Family plans for first responders stand out from the pack: T-Mobile's Magenta First Responder plan is offered for first responder's personal mobile plans, as well as those of family members. The deeply discounted mobile plans provide excellent value and are not matched by competitors. Magenta First Responder is a monthly $25 per line for four lines. In contrast, Verizon offers a $20 discount total for four lines or more. The lowest Verizon plan, Start Unlimited, is $35 per line. For first responders, AT&T reduced its AT&T Unlimited Starter to $26 per line for four lines. However, the AT&T plan slows data speeds when the network is busy, and the price drop may be temporary as the old pricing is shown with a strike-out.

Bottom Line

T-Mobile’s Connecting Heroes enhancements take its public safety offer from curiosity to contender. More work remains for T-Mobile, most notably in the form of mission-critical push-to-talk/data/video capabilities, but the addition of QPP is a dramatic step forward. When combined with the spectrum advantages the company holds at 2.5 GHz, the potential for T-Mobile as a public safety workhorse starts to come into focus.