In the prepaid race, MetroPCS has always been at the forefront of competitive offerings, which makes its unfortunate that the company reported a net loss of 93,000 subscribers in the fourth quarter. As Metro faces increased competition, the company dropped to 8.9 million subscribers overall. The dip in subscribers this morning comes as the company prepares for its merger with T-Mobile USA. It’s the first time the company has reported a net loss of subscribers in the fourth quarter, and the third straight quarter they’ve seen net losses.

“This is the first time MetroPCS has lost subscribers on a net basis in Q4, which is typically its second strongest quarter behind Q1, and marks the company’s third consecutive quarter of net subscriber losses,” UBS analyst John Hodulik said in a research note. “We believe this underscores the urgency with which the company pursued merger partners before reaching a deal with T-Mobile in October.”

As T-Mobile’s recent quarterly numbers have suffered in the postpaid arena, their prepaid growth has been a lone beacon of positive news. With increasing competition in the prepaid space, T-Mobile and MetroPCS will have to work fast and furious right from the start to keep the space competitive with offerings that entice customers to stay with the new company.

Let’s hope that T-Mobile and MetroPCS can achieve exactly what they set out for, to bring Value to the masses on a nationwide network.

Geekwire, All Things D via MetroPCS