T-Mobile and Sprint don’t need to merge for 5G—they said so two months ago

Enlarge / T-Mobile CTO Neville Ray details T-Mobile's plans to build a nationwide 5G network. (credit: T-Mobile USA)

One of the US' most successful mobile broadband providers is acquiring a struggling, smaller competitor, but it needs government approval of the merger. To make their case, the merging companies tell regulators that they can't fully upgrade to the next generation of wireless technology as standalone firms. They must join forces, or US wireless consumers won't benefit from an upgraded network, the companies say.

That description applies equally well to AT&T's attempted takeover of T-Mobile USA in 2011 and to T-Mobile's just-announced plan to buy Sprint. Obama administration regulators rejected the AT&T/T-Mobile claims in 2011 and forced the companies to continue operating separately. Each one thrived on its own.

Trump administration regulators might see similarities between the network upgrade claims of AT&T in 2011 and T-Mobile today. They could even look at statements made by T-Mobile and Sprint just a couple of months ago, when each company said it was on track for a huge 5G deployment-without any mention of needing a merger. But the Federal Communications Commission's new Republican leadership is far more friendly to telecoms than Democrats were, and it could approve the T-Mobile/Sprint combination without much fuss.

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