The rivals and long-rumored merger partners ended speculation about a combination. The two wireless carriers will go it alone vs. Verizon and AT&T.
T-Mobile and Sprint won’t be merging after all.
The companies said Saturday in a statement that they have ceased merger talks because they « were unable to find mutually agreeable terms. »
T-Mobile and Sprint have been rumored to be merger partners for years. The latest round of talks got so close that T-Mobile didn’t hold an earnings conference call over the speculation.
Reports indicated that T-Mobile and Sprint hit turbulence over merger talks, but then T-Mobile sweetened the pot a bit with parent company Deutsche Telekom. However, a deal never materialized.
In a statement, T-Mobile CEO John Legere said the combination with Sprint « has been compelling for a variety of reasons, » but couldn’t close.
Legere said:
Apparently, the biggest hurdle in a T-Mobile-Sprint deal was control. Sprint is owned by Softbank, led by Masayoshi Son. Son considered Sprint to be integral to 5G, Internet of things and Softbank’s long-term portfolio strategy.
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Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure said his company can go it alone.
Analysts were mixed on whether T-Mobile and Sprint would garner regulatory approval for a merger. Both players are competing fiercely with Verizon and AT&T.
