Sprint is unhappy with Deutsche Telekom’s move to merge T-Mobile USA with MetroPCS, and according to a Bloomberg report is allegedly considering making a counter offer of its own. Sprint has reportedly been considering an offer to acquire MetroPCS for a few weeks, and may announce a higher bid for the company as early as next week. Any agreement would be a bit complicated, as the T-Mobile/MetroPCS deal includes co-breakup fees, with a $250 million price tag if T-Mobile backs out of the deal, and a $150 million price tag if MetroPCS does so.
Sprint has not yet approached MetroPCS about a counter offer. Sprint’s board rejected a proposed buyout of MetroPCS earlier this year, and there is no indication that they would even approve of a counter offer, though the landscape has obviously changed after the T-Mobile/MetroPCS merger announcement. Perhaps in light of the increased competition T-Mobile/MetroPCS would bring to the table, Sprint’s board may be a bit more open to the idea of a merger at this point.
Representatives at Sprint, Deutsche Telekom, and MetroPCS either refused to comment or didn’t respond to Bloomberg’s request for comment. Regardless, it’s likely to be an interesting couple of weeks for all parties involved.
[via Bloomberg]