It"s been well over a year since T-Mobile and Sprint announced their intentions to merge and form New T-Mobile, which is apparently going to be the name of the new company. Today though, T-Mobile announced that it finally has a consent decree from the U.S. Department of Justice for the merger, a major milestone for the deal.
As part of the deal to forge the New T-Mobile, Sprint"s prepaid businesses - including Boost Mobile, Virgin Mobile, and Sprint"s own prepaid service - will be sold off to DISH for $1.4 billion. Part of that deal also includes Sprint"s 800MHz spectrum license. DISH will also be able to use the New T-Mobile"s network for seven years, and the New T-Mobile will offer "standard transition services" for up to three years.
"The T-Mobile and Sprint merger we announced last April will create a bigger and bolder competitor than ever before – one that will deliver the most transformative 5G network in the country, lower prices, better quality, unmatched value and thousands of jobs, while unlocking an unprecedented $43B net present value in synergies. We are pleased that our previously announced target synergies, profitability and long-term cash generation have not changed," said T-Mobile CEO and New T-Mobile CEO John Legere.
Of course, DOJ approval is only one new milestone for the T-Mobile/Sprint merger. More regulatory approval is needed, and the two companies are expecting that to happen in Q3, with the final close in the second half of this year.