This post was originally published on this site
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – T-Mobile US (O:) Chief Executive John Legere on Thursday acknowledged talks are ongoing with Sprint Corp (N:) to extend their merger agreement, but he declined to rule out requesting the $26 billion price be reduced.
The T-Mobile-Sprint deal, announced in spring 2018, has won regulatory approval from the Justice Department and Federal Communications Commission but faces a lawsuit from more than a dozen state attorneys general seeking to stop the deal.
“What I can say is yes we are having conversations as partners about whether and how long we move forward the date… and what if any items should be agreed between the parties in exchange for agreeing to extend those terms,” said Legere.
“It’s not a hostile conversation. It’s an active one,” he said, while giving no sense of when agreement might be reached.
Legere was speaking on a webcast to discuss next generation 5G wireless and other initiatives.
He added that he did not expect either side to walk away. “It’s sort of like going to month-to-month on your rent. There’s no more lease. You continue to move forward.”
The previous merger agreement expired last week.
“We continue to be committed to completing the merger with T-Mobile,” Sprint spokeswoman Lisa Belot said in an email.
Legere said a new merger agreement’s terms could entail “‘How do you handle things that have happened that need to possibly to be indemnified, how do you agree on future things that you will share in order to settle the deal, etc.’ It’s a broad array of things.”
Legere said his company had made settlement offers to the state attorneys general, who argue that a merger of the third- and fourth-largest U.S. wireless carriers would mean higher prices for some of the poorest consumers. Legere said he sent them a new letter on Thursday.
Legere was speaking at an event to announce initiatives that he said were dependent on the merger proceeding: a plan to give first-responders free access to 5G wireless; a plan to help children without access to the internet do homework; and a prepaid service for $15 per month with unlimited talk, text and 2GB of high-speed smartphone data..
He also said that the company planned to launch 5G services on Dec. 6.
Fusion Media or anyone involved with Fusion Media will not accept any liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance on the information including data, quotes, charts and buy/sell signals contained within this website. Please be fully informed regarding the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, it is one of the riskiest investment forms possible.
