Sprint and T-Mobile have received approval from the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) for their proposed $26 billion merger.
“Today marks an incredibly important step forward for the New T‑Mobile. We are ready to bring this supercharged Un‑carrier to consumers and businesses across the country, and this milestone brings us much closer to making that vision a reality for customers everywhere!” said T‑Mobile CEO John Legere.
Regulators closely examined the merger amid concerns that reducing the U.S. market to three major national carriers could harm competition. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has signaled support for the merger, but approval from the DoJ was viewed as a more significant obstacle.
Although the merger has not yet formally cleared the FCC, it appears likely to do so following several concessions from the companies. These included a three‑year consumer price freeze, a commitment to challenge the dominant broadband providers often referred to as the “cableopoly,” and a pledge to deliver 5G coverage to 97 percent of the U.S. population within three years.
To address the DoJ’s competitive concerns, T‑Mobile and Sprint agreed to additional measures. The largest concession requires divesting key assets to Dish Network so it can become a viable fourth national competitor in the wireless market.
As part of the deal, Sprint’s prepaid business—including Boost Mobile—will be sold to Dish. Dish already holds unused spectrum that can be allocated to support the newly acquired business and help establish Dish as an independent carrier.
The DoJ concluded that these steps would allow the merged T‑Mobile and Sprint to scale up and accelerate 5G deployment, enhancing their ability to compete with larger rivals such as AT&T and Verizon, while also fostering a stronger fourth competitor in Dish.
Rolando Hernandez, vice president at mobile solutions provider Valid, said: “The approval of the T‑Mobile‑Sprint merger is great news for the industry because it’s an opportunity in the end for better services for consumers.
“Together, T‑Mobile and Sprint can compete with AT&T and Verizon on more equal footing now that their scale is similar. When they operated separately they were often forced to match one another’s services, coverage, and pricing without the scale to make substantial investments. That limited their ability to grow and innovate in a market dominated by larger competitors.
“Now that has changed. With Sprint’s assets integrated, the new T‑Mobile can concentrate on technology initiatives like expanding nationwide 5G and advancing IoT connectivity.”
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