Google and satellite TV provider Dish Network have reportedly discussed partnering up in the last few weeks to provide a new wireless offering. The service would take on the big US operators, the Wall Street Journal wrote citing people familiar with the…
Google and satellite TV provider Dish Network have reportedly discussed partnering up in the last few weeks to provide a new wireless offering. The service would take on the big US operators, the Wall Street Journal wrote citing people familiar with the discussions.
Google declined to comment on the report.
The talks are said to be at a very early stage and could amount to nothing.
Dish’s chairman Charlie Ergen refused to confirm talks with Google but was quoted in the WSJ saying that the company had considered partners who would be new to the wireless industry.
Google has made some tentative steps into building a fixed line network through its Google Fiber project, currently restricted to Kansas City. Should the tech giant want to build a significant network it certainly has the cash reserves to do it: US$45.7bn according to its Q3 results.
For its part Dish has been on the hunt for a partner following its acquisitions of bankrupt satellite firms TerreStar Networks and DBSD North America in 2011.
Dish bought those assets for a combined US$3bn purely to get its hands on their spectrum – the purchases gives it 40 MHz of 2GHz S-band frequencies which could be used to deploy a terrestrial LTE network. However, the FCC is yet to grant Dish permission to use the spectrum.
The satellite company has said previously that it is looking for a partner to build a network with.
Separately, Dish is also open to a merger with DirecTV . Ergen said last week that a deal might cut the mustard with regulators this time around after the regulator blocked a tie-up in 2002.
