T-Mobile's lead in customer satisfaction will be threatened by the coming shake-ups in the mobile industry

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T-Mobile does the best job of meeting subscriber demands, according to a survey of 19,658 US customers from American Consumer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). The carrier boasted the highest customer satisfaction score — 76 out of 100, as of March 2019 — for the second consecutive year.

Verizon and US Cellular tied for second with a score of 74, followed by AT&T (73) and Sprint (65). T-Mobile subscribers also believe their carrier provides better value than the rest of the pack and rate it best in class for ease of billing.

Having a high customer satisfaction score is crucial as the industry enters a period of rapid transformation. While T-Mobile is on top for now, several existing and emerging threats could impede its and other US telecoms' growth and expansion efforts.

That makes understanding consumer sentiment regarding US carriers and industry trends crucial to staying ahead of the competition. Here's a look at some of the industry trends set to intensify competitive pressure in the US wireless space, and which of the US telecoms will lead the pack in the near term.

New T-Mobile. T-Mobile and Sprint took a massive leap toward closing their proposed merger following the Department of Justice's (DOJ) approval last Friday. But as the leader in customer satisfaction merges with the laggard, “New T-Mobile” is likely to take a hit on customer satisfaction, at least in the short term. This opens an opportunity for Verizon and AT&T, the two biggest US carriers, to break the cycle and overtake T-Mobile in customer satisfaction by improving on features essential to the customer experience, including customer service, mobile apps, and network quality.

5G. US carriers are pushing 5G development at a breathless pace, with each of the Big Four US wireless carriers launching 5G services in select markets before the second half of 2019. As the US wireless industry will invest as much as $275 billion over the next seven years to build out 5G, the ability to secure customer loyalty — and even lure new subs from rivals — is becoming more important than ever. Verizon currently boasts an important edge in this regard: The ASCI survey revealed that Verizon leads the pack in network quality, which includes network coverage, data speeds, call quality, and reliability. To translate that lead to the 5G era, Verizon should follow New T-Mobile in using a combination of spectrum bands for its 5G network. As each band provides a unique benefit in the overall 5G experience, Verizon can ensure it provides high-quality options for all of its customers. Currently, Verizon's 5G networks only use mmWave spectrum.

Mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs). Customer satisfaction with MVNOs (77) is now higher than the rating for mobile network operators (73). These companies are putting more pressure on network operators to bolster their offerings, because MVNOs can undercut them in terms of cost — they don't have the overhead of infrastructure. For instance, next year, cable MNVOs alone areexpected to snag roughly 50% of total wireless customer net adds, or about 2.2 million subscribers. New T-Mobile will be best positioned to fend off the threat from MVNOs by emphasizing lower prices as a result of the merger, as price is what both T-Mobile and Sprint customers find as the most satisfying element of their wireless service packages.

Further, the convergence of mobile networks, broadband, and video is presenting US carriers with new opportunities to boost satisfaction scores in the years ahead. The line that separated mobile networks from home broadband networks is fading as consumers use their mobile connections for more digital activities like streaming video, and it will only fade further as 5G networks start to roll out.

As this shift occurs, the role of mobile carriers is changing from just providing wireless to being purveyors of all of a consumer's connectivity and providing access to mobile video. While it's nearly impossible to predict which of the Big Four carriers will lead the pack in the long term, one thing is certain: The future of telecoms is digital content.

Thus, we believe the US carriers that position themselves in ways that extend their role beyond connectivity can stay ahead of the competition as the industry rapidly transforms.