Telecom Lead America:
Philipp Humm, chief executive officer of Deutsche Telekom AG’s T-Mobile USA
division, will step down following last year’s failed $39 billion sale to AT&T.
T-Mobile USA COO Jim Alling will take on Humm’s tasks on an
interim basis, and talks with potential successors are proceeding well.
Humm is looking for new professional challenges outside of
Deutsche Telekom. Humm became CEO of the Bellevue, Washington-based division in
November 2010.
AT&T walked away from a takeover of T-Mobile USA in
December after regulatory opposition. T-Mobile also has struggled to maintain
subscribers, losing 1.65 million contract customers last year. As part of a
turnaround effort, the division is rolling out a faster network using LTE
technology, making job cuts and obtaining additional wireless frequencies,
according to media reports.
T-Mobile USA will continue the strategy set by Humm as it
attempts to win market share from larger rivals, according to Philipp
Kornstaedt, a spokesman for Deutsche Telekom.
“Philipp Humm has given the company some important
initiatives over the past years. Now we need somebody who can convert
initiatives into market successes,” Deutsche Telekom CEO Rene Obermann said in
the statement.
