Clearwire recently laid off 15% of its staff, announced the delay of its own branded smartphone and retail stores and mentioned that it might run into some short-term funding issues. However, Sprint, who owns 54% of Clearwire, says that the 4G/WiMax service provider might not have too much to worry about. Dan Hesse, CEO of Sprint, told an audience at OpenMobile in San Francisco, “That doesn’t mean that Sprint and other partners won’t continue to fund Clearwire.”
While Hesse didn’t specifically say that Sprint would definitely fund Clearwire, it would probably be in its best interest to do so given its majority stake in the company. But apparently Hesse’s remark didn’t do much to help Clearwire:
“I’m not sure if it’s (Hesse’s remark) new to the market, but based on the share price cut Clearwire has had in the last few days it’s clear that investors are placing a lower probability on the potential for Clearwire to raise additional capital,” said Mizuho Securities analyst Michael Nelson.
Of course, the WiMax distributor is still looking to secure funding in the short-term, but right now its best hope appears to be a little help from its partners.
[Via: Reuters]