Deals
Sprint, SoftBank Said in Informal Deal Talks With T-Mobile
- Both sides expressed willingness this week to explore deals
- U.S. merger talks had been on hold during a spectrum auction
Sprint, T-Mobile Said to Begin Informal Merger Talks
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Sprint Corp. has started preliminary conversations to merge with T-Mobile US Inc., the latest attempt to consolidate in a market watched closely by U.S. regulators, according to people familiar with the matter.
Executives of both SoftBank Group Corp., Sprint’s largest shareholder, and Sprint itself have had informal contact with T-Mobile owner Deutsche Telekom AG about a transaction, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the discussions are private. Merger talks in the wireless industry had been on hold for almost a year because of a government spectrum auction that required participants to avoid negotiating deals with each other until April 27.