Verizon, AT&T Spend Billions on C-Band Spectrum: What That Means for You If you live in a dense area and want better Verizon or AT&T performance, look for a C-band phone now. By Sascha Segan (Photo: VCG via Getty Images) If you're buying a Verizon or AT&T phone this year, and you don't live out in the sticks, you need to keep an eye on C-band. The two carriers just spent $68.9 billion on this 5G spectrum, which could speed up their networks in areas covering about 60% of the US population. The C-band results came out yesterday, and Verizon and AT&T snatched up all of the frequencies that will be available at the end of 2021. T-Mobile, US Cellular, and investor groups that don't build networks themselves, were the additional major purchasers for airwaves becoming available later.