US: Sprint, T-Mobile said to have struck a deal

The latest reports suggest Softbank-owned Sprint and Deutsche Telekom-owned T-Mobile have officially struck a deal.

According to reports from Japanese news outlet Kyodo, Deutsche Telekom and Softbank officially struck a deal for T-Mobile and Sprint to merge.

Despite the reports, sources say the transaction is complicated and has yet to be fully worked out. The sources said, however, that Germany-based Deutsche Telekom did agree with Japan-based Softbank to maintain a minority stake in the new company that would merge the US’s third- and fourth-place wireless firms. Financing and the exact price tag on the merger, however, have yet to be worked out.

Still, reports say, the news suggests the companies are officially set on the transaction. Among one of the most complicated aspects of the merger includes regulatory clearance for the deal.

The high-profile merger would upend the US wireless market and require regulatory approval from multiple authorities.

While some consumer advocates and other critics say the deal will harm the nation’s industry, Sprint has defended the deal as one that would create a company capable of competing against market leaders Verizon and AT&T.

Both Softbank and Deutsche Telekom declined to comment.

Full content: Reuters

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