“On the heels of the T-Mobile/Sprint merger announcement (Round 3), the market has been pessimistic, with consensus on the Street that chances of approval stands at less than 50%,” Mark Lowenstein writes for Tech.pinions.
“I disagree,” Lowenstein writes. “If T-Mobile and Sprint play their cards right, the chances of getting the deal through this time ‘round are much better. Here are some of the main points I believe regulators should consider.
1. The Market Has Changed.
2. Why the Focus on Wireless When It’s Broadband That Needs More Competition?
3. What Would Have Become of Sprint?
4. This is good for 5G.
5. This Is Partially The Fault Of Our Existing Spectrum Policy.
6. Perhaps Some Creative Concessions Would Be In Order.
“There are valid arguments on both sides of this one, from a regulatory perspective,” Lowenstein writes. “But given important changes in the market’s structure, plus the road ahead from a strategic and financial perspective, the benefits of this proposed combination outweigh the potential downsides.”
Each of the six points are covered in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Third time’s the charm?
T-Mobile and Sprint would do well to continue emphasizing how the merger could add U.S. jobs. If the merger goes through, the new T-Mobile plans to invest up to $40 billion in its new network and business in the first three years alone, a massive capital outlay that T-Mobile and Sprint say will fuel job growth at the new company and across related sectors. An investment of that size would be 46% more than T-Mobile and Sprint spent combined in the past three years.
More jobs = regulatory approval.
SEE ALSO:
T-Mobile and Sprint merge in $146 billion deal expected to drive significant U.S. job growth – April 30, 2018