Sprint and T-Mobile End Merger Discussions
- 7 years ago
Sprint and T-Mobile End Merger Discussions
Mr. Claure of Sprint added in the statement, “We have agreed that it is best to move forward on our own.”
People briefed on the discussions, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly, said
that a deal always hinged on SoftBank’s comfort with taking a minority stake in the combined business.
The announcement represents a setback to Sprint, T-Mobile
and their majority shareholders — Sprint is owned by the Japanese technology giant SoftBank and T-Mobile by Deutsche Telekom of Germany — in their efforts to create a stronger third-place competitor in the American wireless market.
Sprint and T-Mobile said on Saturday that they had ended merger talks, marking the second time in three years
that the two failed to reach a deal to create a stronger competitor to Verizon and AT&T.
The final blow to the latest round of talks came Saturday night in Tokyo, when Tim Höttges, the chief executive of Deutsche
Telekom, met at the Tokyo home of SoftBank’s founder, Masayoshi Son, according to a person briefed on the matter.
Son and Mr. Claure ultimately rejected the plan because it did not give SoftBank
and Sprint enough control over the combined entity, people briefed on the discussions said.
“We have been clear all along that a deal with anyone will have to result in superior long-term value for T-Mobile’s shareholders compared to our outstanding stand-alone performance
and track record,” John Legere, T-Mobile’s chief executive, said in the statement.
Mr. Claure of Sprint added in the statement, “We have agreed that it is best to move forward on our own.”
People briefed on the discussions, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly, said
that a deal always hinged on SoftBank’s comfort with taking a minority stake in the combined business.
The announcement represents a setback to Sprint, T-Mobile
and their majority shareholders — Sprint is owned by the Japanese technology giant SoftBank and T-Mobile by Deutsche Telekom of Germany — in their efforts to create a stronger third-place competitor in the American wireless market.
Sprint and T-Mobile said on Saturday that they had ended merger talks, marking the second time in three years
that the two failed to reach a deal to create a stronger competitor to Verizon and AT&T.
The final blow to the latest round of talks came Saturday night in Tokyo, when Tim Höttges, the chief executive of Deutsche
Telekom, met at the Tokyo home of SoftBank’s founder, Masayoshi Son, according to a person briefed on the matter.
Son and Mr. Claure ultimately rejected the plan because it did not give SoftBank
and Sprint enough control over the combined entity, people briefed on the discussions said.
“We have been clear all along that a deal with anyone will have to result in superior long-term value for T-Mobile’s shareholders compared to our outstanding stand-alone performance
and track record,” John Legere, T-Mobile’s chief executive, said in the statement.