Jeff Baumgartner, Senior Editor
April 23, 2025
3 Min Read
AT&T saw stronger fixed wireless access (FWA) subscriber gains in the first quarter of 2025. The overall performance of that product – branded as AT&T Internet Air – partly stems from AT&T's multi-year plan to switch from Nokia radios to Ericsson radios, according to CEO John Stankey.
Improvements in the overall FWA business come from that ongoing wireless network "modernization," Stankey said today on the company's Q1 2025 earnings call. That vendor conversion opened up a new FWA footprint and will continue to do so in the coming years, he said.
"On the margin, we're seeing better performance off of that investment than we would've anticipated," Stankey said.
AT&T added 181,000 Internet Air subscribers in Q1, up from a gain of 110,000 in the year-ago period and up from 158,000 in the prior quarter. AT&T, which launched its new 5G-powered FWA product in August 2023, ended the quarter with 803,000 Internet Air customers.
New Street Research estimates that AT&T has enough capacity to support about 7 million FWA subs.
No shift in FWA strategy
AT&T continues to view Internet Air as a way to "catch" DSL customers as it looks to retire copper plant and as a "holding product" in areas that currently do not have fiber, but will get fiber eventually. AT&T also sees FWA as a "good match" for business customers, Stankey said.
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"Our strategy overall on how we think about using fixed wireless access has not changed," he explained. "It's not just about where you're deploying fiber and where you aren't. It's about what you need to do to make sure you can transition out of legacy services."
Copper retirement plan in a 'great place'
Stankey said AT&T is in a "great place" in its plan to retire the bulk of its copper infrastructure (excluding California) by the end of 2029. He credited that optimism to a blend of AT&T's internal activity and a recent handful of FCC orders that aim to streamline requirements that, in turn, accelerate the sunset of copper networks.
He said about 25% of AT&T's wire centers have "fairly clean sailing" to move toward a copper sunset and that there are many more applications now pending.
"We have an opportunity to move even faster following recent FCC orders," Stankey said. "I think we now are focused on the effectiveness of our execution ... and less on the effectiveness of the execution of our legal and regulatory affairs organization."
Lumen questions swirl
Stankey declined to comment on . Regarding inorganic opportunities, "I always keep my mind open to something that I think can improve value for the shareholder," he said.
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Meanwhile, there's speculation about how AT&T might structure a deal for the Lumen assets. In a research note issued after today's call, New Street Research analyst Jonathan Chaplin wondered if AT&T would buy those assets outright or acquire them via the Gigapower JV with BlackRock.
But there's now even more expectation that AT&T will indeed take a run at Lumen. "Based on how we understand his [Stankey's] priorities, we think the deal is likely," Chaplin wrote.
Broadband sub growth
Aided by Internet Air and fiber, AT&T added 137,000 broadband customers in Q1, up from a gain of 55,000 a year ago. AT&T ended the quarter with 14.11 million broadband subs, up 2.5% year-over-year.
AT&T added 261,000 fiber subs, up from a gain of 252,000 a year earlier, ending the quarter with 9.59 million.
AT&T added 600,000 fiber passings in Q1, extending its total to 29.5 million. That pace puts AT&T ahead of schedule to reach 30 million locations with fiber by the end of 2025. Notably, AT&T's reported fiber served locations include Gigapower starting with Q1 2025 results. Gigapower is the AT&T-Blackrock joint venture focused on fiber builds outside of AT&T's legacy wireline footprint.
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AT&T's new target is to bring fiber to 50 million locations by 2029 via a combination of organic buildouts, the Gigapower JV and a mix of open access agreements.
AT&T shed 124,000 non-fiber subs, lowering that total to 4.52 million.
Editor's note: The story has been updated with commentary from New Street Research.
