US satellite broadcaster Dish Network has said it could make sense to bid for T-Mobile US now that the telco’s larger rival Sprint is out of the running. The comments from Dish chairman Charlie Ergen came as Deutsche Telekom rejected a rival US$15bn…
US satellite broadcaster Dish Network has said it could make sense to bid for T-Mobile US now that the telco’s larger rival Sprint is out of the running.
The comments from Dish chairman Charlie Ergen came as Deutsche Telekom rejected a rival US$15bn offer from France’s Iliad for its US mobile operations.
“Certainly to the extent that Sprint either dropped out or wasn’t interested or the government wouldn’t allow it … then T-mobile is something we would have an interest in,” said Ergen during a results call yesterday.
Ergen has talked openly about its interest in T-Mobile in the past and, last year, tried to acquire Sprint as part of plans to deploy a terrestrial network with its satellite spectrum.
He also reiterated that it was possible to sell the spectrum that Dish has been amassing, but added that the group prefers to build more value by using it to enhance its business.
French mobile challenger Iliad also made a move for T-Mobile US with a US$33 per share offer for a 56.6% stake, which was lower than Sprint’s reported US$40 per share deal, but this was rejected by the target’s parent Deutsche Telekom.
In a results call today, Deutsche Telekom CEO Tim Hoettges was quoted saying that the company has yet to receive an offer that would improve the position of the US’s fourth-largest mobile operator.
Iliad is rumoured to be in talks with US cablecos and satellite companies, including Dish, to sweeten its offer for T-Mobile.
