T-Mobile and Sprint Merger Expected to Receive Final Approval Tomorrow

A judge overseeing a lawsuit aiming to stop the merger between T-Mobile and Sprint is planning to rule in favor of allowing the deal to go forward, reports The New York Times.

The FCC formally approved the merger between T-Mobile and Sprint in November 2019, but attorneys general from 13 states and the District of Columbia filed an antitrust lawsuit aiming to block it. The states argued that combining the two companies was not in the public's interest as it would reduce competition and lead to higher smartphone bills.

tmobile sprint logos
Final arguments in the antitrust suit took place last month, and sources that spoke to The New York Times said that none of the parties involved have read the judge's ruling yet, so there could be conditions or restrictions attached.

Both Sprint and T-Mobile are planning to make announcements related to the merger on Tuesday, as the lawsuit was the final roadblock preventing it from moving forward. If the judge does indeed rule in favor of Sprint and T-Mobile, the newly combined company will be known as T-Mobile and it will have 100 million customers.

The two companies have committed to building a nationwide 5G network covering 97 percent of the U.S. population in three years and 99 percent within six years. They have also promised not to raise their prices for three years following the merger's completion.

Under the terms of the deal, both T-Mobile and Sprint were required to sell some of their assets to Dish, as the FCC wants to see Dish become the fourth nationwide facilities-based wireless carrier in the United States.

Popular Stories

New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18

20 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.2

Monday December 16, 2024 8:55 am PST by
Apple released iOS 18.2 in the second week of December, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. Apple has added a handful of new non-AI related feature controls as...
iphone 16 apple intelligence

Apple Drops Plans for iPhone Hardware Subscription Service

Wednesday December 18, 2024 11:39 am PST by
Apple is no longer planning to launch a hardware subscription service that would let customers "subscribe" to get a new iPhone each year, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman first shared rumors about Apple's work on a hardware subscription service back in 2022, and at the time, he said that Apple wanted to develop a simple system that would allow customers to pay a monthly fee to gain...
iPhone 17 Pro Dual Tone Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Rumored to Stick With 'Triangular' Camera Design

Wednesday December 18, 2024 2:36 am PST by
Contrary to recent reports, the iPhone 17 Pro will not feature a horizontal camera layout, according to the leaker known as "Instant Digital." In a new post on Weibo, the leaker said that a source has confirmed that while the appearance of the back of the iPhone 17 Pro has indeed changed, the layout of the three cameras is "still triangular," rather than the "horizontal bar spread on the...
elevation lab airtag battery

Your AirTag's Battery Will Last for Up to 10 Years With Elevation Lab's New TimeCapsule Enclosure

Wednesday December 18, 2024 10:05 am PST by
Elevation Lab today announced the launch of TimeCapsule, an innovative and simple solution for increasing the battery life of Apple's AirTag. Priced at $20, TimeCapsule is an AirTag enclosure that houses two AA batteries that offer 14x more battery capacity than the CR2032 battery that the AirTag runs on. It works by attaching the AirTag's upper housing to the built-in custom contact in the...
apple tv 4k yellow bg feature

New Apple TV Rumored to Launch Next Year With These Features

Tuesday December 17, 2024 9:02 am PST by
The current Apple TV 4K was released more than two years ago, so the streaming device is becoming due for a hardware upgrade soon. Fortunately, it was recently rumored that a new Apple TV will launch at some point next year. Below, we recap rumors about the next-generation Apple TV. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman last week reported that Apple has been working on its own combined Wi-Fi and...
blackmagic vision pro

Blackmagic Debuts $30K 3D Camera for Capturing Video for Vision Pro

Monday December 16, 2024 4:17 pm PST by
Blackmagic today announced that its URSA Cine Immersive camera is now available for pre-order, with deliveries set to start late in the first quarter of 2025. Blackmagic says that this is the world's first commercial camera system designed to capture 3D content for the Vision Pro. The URSA Cine Immersive camera was first introduced in June, but it has not been available for purchase until...
mac pro creativity

Apple Launched the Controversial 'Trashcan' Mac Pro 11 Years Ago Today

Thursday December 19, 2024 7:00 pm PST by
Apple launched the controversial "trashcan" Mac Pro eleven years ago today, introducing one of its most criticized designs that persisted through a period of widespread discontentment with the Mac lineup. The redesign took the Mac Pro in an entirely new direction, spearheaded by a polished aluminum cylindrical design that became unofficially dubbed the "trashcan" in the Mac community. All of ...
iPhone 17 Slim Feature

'iPhone 17 Air' With 'Major' Design Changes and 19-Inch MacBook Detailed in New Report

Sunday December 15, 2024 9:47 am PST by
Apple is planning a series of "major design" and "format changes" for iPhones over the next few years, according to The Wall Street Journal's Aaron Tilley and Yang Jie. The paywalled report published today corroborated the widely-rumored "iPhone 17 Air" with an "ultrathin" design that is thinner than current iPhone models. The report did not mention a specific measurement, but previous...

Top Rated Comments

glowplug Avatar
64 months ago

I can see where the antitrust lawsuit is coming from, but the merger will ultimately help boost 5G coverage
But it won’t. This is what merger proponents claim but it never ever happens. See The Curse of Bigness: Antitrust in the New Gilded Age by Tim Wu.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
CJ Dorschel Avatar
64 months ago

But it won’t. This is what merger proponents claim but it never ever happens. See The Curse of Bigness: Antitrust in the New Gilded Age by Tim Wu.
Exactly. One example that burns me to this day:

The Time Warner/Spectrum merger. I remember being in touch with friends who worked at Time Warner for the two year period between the announcement and finalization and plan roll outs that came in Feb/March 2017. I kept every document sent from Time Warner promising plans would be lower, bills simplified, faster speeds, and records of all communications on how my plans would change for the better etc etc. and was in regular touch with my friends who worked in corp as I wanted to take advantage of the faster internet speeds and the plans they initially intended to roll out. I have a home in Pittsford (Rochester) NY which locked out other cable providers besides Time Warner as Rochester Tele/Frontier and Monroe County had a "deal". No one could lay new lies down which meant satellite or DSL where the only other options. Greenlight Networks found a way around it by going door to door over the past few years which bypassed stipulations but in order to get the service your neighborhood has to pass the 60% demand threshold for Greenlight to lay down new lines so there are parts that aren't getting service years later while a neighborhood right next to me has had it for years.

Then February 2017 comes and Spectrum announces a delay. Turns out they got tipped off from Ajit in the FCC that the administration was deregulating the telecom industry for "national security" which really gave them the green light to increase prices esp in markets where there was no competition. Now ~75% of the US internet/cable market is owned by one large conglomerate. Gone are the days of renewing contracts every 12 months through the retention dept as they don't bother working with longtime customers since they know there aren't better alternatives unless you cut the cord yet that's just cable and most don't know how or want to be bothered. My monthly for 350/30Mbps, silver tier cable tv, and phone is $287 and if you try to remove any one of the three it goes up in price as they want people on their package plans.

Longterm the same thing will happen with Sprint and t-Mobile Stateside. Another Ma Bell with promises they won't keep. It's all about the Benjamins.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sw1tcher Avatar
64 months ago

Subscribed to see how this pans out. Hopefully for the better. T-Mobile needs a good boost.
Boost (Mobile) is going to get sold to Dish Network if merger gets approved. So no Boost for T-Mobile. ;)


Probably same as at&t and Verizon, or maybe just under what they charge.

No one knows, and if anyone says otherwise are simply speculating without hard evidence.
With John Legere stepping down at the end of April 2020, I fear the new T-Mobile will not be the disrupting trailblazer of old. They'll start by laying off hundreds if not thousands of jobs. Then after 3 years, prices will rise and plans will change in their favor.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TTTedP Avatar
64 months ago

Time to buy sprint stock
Nvm already up 70%
I'm in it below $4 ?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cbusbuck Avatar
64 months ago

I can see where the antitrust lawsuit is coming from, but the merger will ultimately help boost 5G coverage across the US.
Oh you're a funny guy. :p
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jaisonline Avatar
64 months ago
I was hoping this wouldn’t go through .

Less competition only means 2 things. Higher prices and generally, worse customer service, for consumers.

Phones aside, U.S. voice & data plans were the cheapest in the mid-2000s when we had Cingular, Sprint, Nextel, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon to choose from. I know it was a different era in terms of phone tech, but carriers were forced to consider 5 other competitors when pricing plans & offering promotions.

just my opinion.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)