SPRINTING AWAY: In the July to September period, Sprint Nextel Corp. lost subscribers for the first time in two and a half years. That threatens a fragile turnaround as it struggles to compete with Verizon Wireless and AT&T, both of which are larger.

IPADDING UP: After adding the iPhone to the lineup a year ago, CEO Dan Hesse is now optimistic about getting to sell the iPad. However, Sprint's network offers slower data downloads than the bigger rivals in most places. The coming infusion of cash from Japanese investor Softbank Corp. will also help, he said.

BOTTOM LINE: Sprint's loss widened to $767 million, or 26 cents per share. Revenue rose 5 percent to $8.76 billion.