For years, Sprint has promised that the network that will truly impress consumers is always just around the corner. That was the case when the company announced the acquisition of Nextel, and it was the case when the company unveiled its "Network Vision" program back in 2010. The problem is that money is spent, time passes, and not a whole lot seems to change.

With Sprint still in last place in many studies examining speed, latency, coverage and customer satisfaction, Sprint is back again promising that under the ownership of SoftBank, the Sprint network every body has dreamed of is just around the corner.

Speaking last week at the Code conference in California, new Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure told intendees that Sprint will be the first or second place carrier in somewhere between eighteen and twenty four months. How? Claure lauded Sprint as being the carrier with "the largest spectrum holdings in the world," and a new owner in SoftBank dedicated to funding and building a top-shelf network.

"We have 124 first-place awards, compared to 12 last year," Claure said. "I can tell you we’re making progress, and I can tell you the area of focus will be the continued building of our network."

Moving forward, Sprint says the company is launching a new "Next Generation Network" strategy to dramatically improve coverage and performance. Sprint has issued a request for proposal (RFP) and is currently fielding vendor proposals. Customers, meanwhile, are hoping that this Sprint promise is the one that finally bears fruit.