Company guide
UScellular cell tower lease: what owners need to know
If UScellular paid you rent for a tower on your land, your lease is now most likely with Array Digital Infrastructure. When UScellular sold its wireless business to T-Mobile on August 1, 2025, it kept its towers and the ground leases under them, and renamed itself Array.
The name change alone does not change your lease terms. What may change is how many carriers are on your tower. T-Mobile is folding UScellular's network into its own, and some towers are likely to lose their carrier by early 2028. Watch for letters about rent, extensions, buyouts or removal over the next few years.
Who UScellular is to you now
UScellular was a regional carrier for decades, strongest in rural and mid-sized markets. In 2025 it split in two:
- T-Mobile bought the wireless business: the customers, stores, network operations and some spectrum, for about $4.3 billion.
- Array Digital Infrastructure is what was left. It kept the towers. Array is majority owned by Telephone and Data Systems (TDS), trades on the New York Stock Exchange, and runs about 4,450 towers in 19 states. That makes it the fifth largest tower company in the US.
So there are two common situations. If UScellular owned the tower on your land, Array is now your tenant and pays your ground rent. If UScellular only had antennas on your roof, water tank or someone else's tower, that equipment was part of the wireless business T-Mobile bought. Check whose name is on your rent check now.
What changed in 2025 and 2026
- August 1, 2025: T-Mobile closed its purchase of the wireless business. Merging the two networks was expected to take about two years.
- Long-term T-Mobile deal: T-Mobile signed a 15-year agreement to put equipment on at least 2,015 more Array towers, and extended its leases on about 600 Array towers it already used.
- Interim T-Mobile leases: T-Mobile also took short-term leases on about 1,800 more Array towers. These run 30 months, to January 2028, and T-Mobile can cancel them tower by tower.
- Towers with no tenant: Array expects 800 to 1,800 of its towers to have no tenant once T-Mobile is done. Its plan for those towers includes more leasing, lowering ground rents, and selling towers if needed. It has also said some towers carry large removal costs.
- Other tenants and spectrum: In late 2025 Array signed a deal giving Verizon access to its towers. It sold spectrum to AT&T (closed January 2026) and Verizon (closed June 2026).
- DISH: DISH, a small Array tenant, stopped paying in 2025 and its wireless unit filed for bankruptcy in 2026.
The letters you may get and how to respond
A new name or new landlord notice
This usually just tells you Array is the company paying you. Check that the site and rent match your lease. Confirm by calling a number you already have, not one in the letter. Update your tax form if asked. You should not need to sign anything else to keep getting paid.
A rent cut request
Towers with fewer tenants are the most likely targets. Ask which carriers are on your tower today and what happens if you say no. Check how and when your lease lets them leave. Do not agree before you know your real alternative.
An extension request
Array may want your lease to run as long as T-Mobile's 15-year deal. Those added years are worth real money to Array. Price them. Do not give them away for a small bonus.
A buyout offer
Array or another buyer may offer a lump sum for your lease or an easement. Many buyouts land around 15 to 22 times a year of rent. Get the full written terms and get competing offers.
A termination or removal notice
If your tower loses its tenants, Array may end the lease or sell the tower. Check the notice period, the removal and restoration duties (including how much of the foundation must come out), any bond, and rent owed through the end date. Get the removal schedule in writing.
How Array as a tenant affects what your lease is worth
Array is much smaller than American Tower, Crown Castle or SBA. But it has a long contract with a strong anchor tenant. T-Mobile made up about 61% of Array's tower rent in 2025, and AT&T and Verizon are tenants too.
Your value depends a lot on which group your tower is in. A tower in T-Mobile's 15-year group has a major carrier locked in, which is the best case for you. A tower that only has an interim lease, or no carrier at all, faces real risk of a rent cut request, a sale or removal by early 2028. Ask Array in writing which carriers are on your tower and whether T-Mobile's lease there is long term.
If your tower looks solid, there is no rush to sell. If it looks at risk, a fair offer now may beat a lease that could end. Either way, compare offers before you sign.
Common questions
UScellular is gone. Who pays my rent now?
If UScellular owned the tower on your land, Array Digital Infrastructure pays you now. It is the same company with a new name, so your lease terms carry over.
Is T-Mobile now my tenant?
On a former UScellular tower, T-Mobile may rent space from Array, but your lease is still with Array. If UScellular had antennas directly on your roof or water tank, check whether T-Mobile now pays you.
Will the tower on my land be taken down?
Some Array towers probably will be. Array expects 800 to 1,800 towers to have no tenant after T-Mobile finishes merging networks, and T-Mobile's interim leases run to January 2028. No public list says which towers. Watch your mail and ask Array about your site.
Should I accept a rent cut to keep my tower?
Not until you know which carriers are on the tower, what your lease lets Array do if you say no, and what it would cost Array to leave. A cut lasts for the rest of your lease, so treat it like a sale.
Do I need to sign anything because of the name change?
Usually not. You may need to update payment or tax details. Read anything else carefully, because an amendment or extension can be bundled into what looks like paperwork.
MyTowerLease.com is independent. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by or paid by UScellular.