T-Mobile Launches ‘Connecting Heroes’ – Free 5G for First Responder Agencies is Here

BELLEVUE, Wash., May 21, 2020 /3BL Media/ — Not just a bigger company, a better one. In a video today, T-Mobile (NASDAQ: TMUS) CEO Mike Sievert launched Connecting Heroes, the Un-carrier’s 10-year commitment to provide free service and 5G access to first responder agencies — all public and non-profit state and local fire, police and EMS departments — saving them up to $7 billion. Interested agencies can sign up at www.t-mobile.com/connectingheroes. Plus, the Un-carrier continues to build out its industry-leading 5G network at a furious pace. T-Mobile’s 5G network is now 8 times bigger than AT&T’s and 28 THOUSAND times bigger than Verizon’s.

As a ‘thank you’ to everyone who’s shifted the way they work and live during this pandemic, the Un-carrier is giving Sprint and T-Mobile postpaid customers a new iPhone SE on us or up to half off a flagship superphone from another top brand starting tomorrow through Monday, May 25. Customers just trade in their existing eligible device, and they’ll owe nothing but the sales tax on an iPhone SE — a powerful new smartphone in a popular design — or get up to $500 off another new superphone. No add-a-line. Nothing more to buy. Just “thank you.”

“When we’re at our most vulnerable, first responders are there for us … and they are under more pressure today than ever before. Connecting Heroes is one way we’re saying ‘thank you’ in this critical time,” said Mike Sievert, CEO of T-Mobile. “People who save lives shouldn’t have to choose between life-saving equipment and wireless service. And with Connecting Heroes, they won’t have to. We’re not limiting this program to a few months or a year … first responders can get free service including 5G access, for a full decade. THIS is the kind of impact the new T-Mobile can have in the world. THIS is the kind of difference we can make.”

State and local first responder agencies face tight budgets, year after year. So, they’re forced to make impossible trade-offs between providing them critical life-saving equipment or the communications services needed to do their jobs. Not anymore. Connecting Heroes provides free unlimited talk, text and smartphone data with the highest network priority to every public and non-profit state and local, police, fire and EMS agency.

“Access to critical communications is vitally important for our first responders,” said Mike Mayta, CIO at the City of Wichita, KS. “The more information that we can get to them, the better they’re going to be able to serve the public. We’ve been partners with T-Mobile for well over 10 years, and what we’re seeing through this Heroes program is, they’re walking the walk and not just talking the talk.”

If all first responder agencies sign up, it’s an estimated $7.7 billion back in their budgets over 10 years. Money that can help close the budget shortfall they face year after year. Money they can put towards extra pay, lifesaving tools and better support for these brave heroes. That is #5GforGood.

5G for All

The launch of Connecting Heroes is made possible by T-Mobile’s 5G network and the massive capacity that will be unleashed from the merger with Sprint. In just a few short years, the new company will have 14 times the capacity of T-Mobile standalone, covering 99% of Americans nationwide from factories to farms.

The first step in having a reliable network is actually connecting to the network. T-Mobile customers have the best 5G availability according to Opensignal’s latest analysis — Quantifying the Global 5G Experience Across Ten Operators^[1]. This means T-Mobile customers connect to a 5G network more often than any other U.S. provider and more than any other country in the report. And the Un-carrier’s unprecedented 5G network is only getting bigger.

5G service is now live in San Francisco and Sacramento and is starting to light up across Tampa and Orlando. T-Mobile’s 5G network now covers nearly 6,000 cities and towns and more than 225 million Americans across more than 1 million square miles. That’s on top of the Un-carrier’s far-reaching LTE network that covers more than 99% of people in the U.S. By comparison, Verizon 5G covers limited outdoor areas of 34 cities and roughly 36 square miles. You can check out T-Mobile’s nationwide coverage map, including 5G, at www.t-mobile.com/coverage.

Thank You!

And, the Un-carrier is rolling out a big ‘thank you’ to all those who have cared for us … and everyone who has had to shift the way they live and work during this pandemic. They can all get an iPhone SE on us with bill credits, or take $500 off another flagship superphone via trade-in credit & rebate (at T-Mobile) or bill credits (at Sprint), when they trade in their existing eligible smartphone and are on a T-Mobile or Sprint postpaid plan — or switch to one — and pay the tax. Just head online or to a Sprint or T-Mobile store. For more information on this offer, visit t-mobile.com or sprint.com.

“The way the Un-carrier says THANK YOU is, of course, by putting money back in your pocket — like with an iPhone on us or half off one of the latest 5G superphones,” said Sievert. “This weekend, every T-Mobile and Sprint postpaid customer can get a new iPhone SE on us, or half off another brand-new phone, with eligible trade-in. Why? Because ‘thank you’ — that’s why!”

Connecting Heroes comes on top of the Un-carrier’s best-in-class plan for individual first responders and their families — Magenta First Responder. With 50% off family lines compared to Magenta, Magenta First Responder delivers the best discount in wireless for individual first responders and their families.

This move is the latest of T-Mobile’s merger-related commitments to launch. Connecting Heroes is part of a series of initiatives dubbed #5GforGood. In March, the first of those, T-Mobile Connect launched months ahead of schedule to usher in a new level of affordability in wireless. T-Mobile also continues to include 5G for free, at no extra cost, and to improve coverage for Sprint customers, increasing LTE coverage by hundreds of thousands of square miles, and increasing average upload speeds by up to 50% for customers with 5G devices. And, earlier this month, T-Mobile unveiled plans to hire 5,000 people next year, as part of the company’s commitment to create new jobs.

For more information on #5GforGood and Connecting Heroes, check out www.t-mobile.com/connectingheroes.

^[1] Opensignal – Quantifying the global 5G experience across ten operators, May 2020, based on independent analysis of mobile measurements recorded during the period January 31 – April 30, 2020 © 2020 Opensignal Limited.

Connecting Heroes line eligibility subject to reverification.  Coverage not available in some areas and may be impacted by emergencies; check your response area. While 5G access won't require a certain plan or feature, some uses/services might.  On device offers, if you cancel wireless service, remaining balance on required finance agreement (T-Mobile customers) or lease (Sprint customers) becomes due. Allow 2 bill cycles for credits. Rebates via virtual prepaid MasterCard (no cash access; expires in 6 months). See details, Terms and Conditions, and Open Internet information at T-Mobile.com.

About T-Mobile

T-Mobile U.S. Inc. (NASDAQ: TMUS) is America’s supercharged Un-carrier, delivering an advanced 4G LTE and transformative nationwide 5G network that will offer reliable connectivity for all. T-Mobile’s customers benefit from its unmatched combination of value and quality, unwavering obsession with offering them the best possible service experience and undisputable drive for disruption that creates competition and innovation in wireless and beyond. Based in Bellevue, Wash., T-Mobile provides services through its subsidiaries and operates its flagship brands, T-Mobile, Metro by T-Mobile and Sprint. For more information please visit: http://www.t-mobile.com.