Following several months of negotiations on a possible merger, T-Mobile and Sprint have officially reached a common ground. According to a jointly signed press release, wireless carriers T-Mobile U.S. and Sprint merger talks have ended after both companies failed to find “mutually agreeable terms”.
The failed merger talk is premised on failure and the unwillingness of both Sprint parent SoftBank Group Corp and T-Mobile parent Deutsche Telekom AG to part with much of their valued U.S. telecom assets.
In the statement which reads in part, John Legere, President, and CEO of T-Mobile US, Inc said: we have been clear all along that a deal with anyone will have to result in superior long-term value for T-Mobile’s shareholders compared to our outstanding stand-alone performance and track record.” Sprint’s President and CEO on his own part outlined that while it recognizes the potential value of a possible merger, “we have agreed that it is best to move forward on our own.”
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The deal talks, which began way back in 2014 resurfaced earlier this September when both sides reportedly began intense deliberations on a merger process that would have the merged body challenge AT&T and Verizon which are their two main rivals.
Reports have it that both sides were close to reaching a common ground back in October, but Sprint reportedly called off a last-minute offer from T-Mobile which informed of the decision to officially put an end to talks.
While no reasons were given for calling off the talks, there are speculations that such decision is centered on who would control the resulting entity, should scale through.
The decision to issue a joint statement on the deadlocked deal could be a clear signal that both companies recognize the potential benefits of a successful merger, and could, therefore, be open to further talks in the future.
