US Justice Department officials want T-Mobile US and Sprint to lay the groundwork for a new mobile operator, with its own network, as a condition to clearing their merger, a person familiar with matter told Bloomberg. This would provide a new competitor in the market after the third- and fourth-largest players merge.
T-Mobile and Sprint agreed earlier concessions with the FCC to gain its approval, including selling the prepaid brand Boost Mobile and increasing broadband coverage. However, the DoJ is reportedly more concerned about the impact on competition, prompting the operators to consider other concessions.
The proposal could see the companies forced to sell offer network and other assets in order to support the creation of a new operator. This could weaken the rationale for their merger, which is to create a stronger rival against market leaders AT&T and Verizon.
