Could Comcast and Charter Become America’s fourth Major Wireless Carrier?

The Department of Justice reportedly talked to representatives from Comcast and Charter recently about filling the void of the fourth major US wireless carrier that would be created if T-Mobile and Sprint are allowed to merge. Apparently, as a condition for approving T-Mobile’s $26.5 billion acquisition bid for Sprint, the DOJ wants the Number 3 & 4 wireless companies to divest wireless spectrum and enable a fourth US major wireless carrier. For their part, Comcast and Charter both have nascent mobile services through mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) agreements with Verizon. And the cable companies collaborate on wireless business planning and technology. As of the end of the first quarter, Comcast reported 1.4 million wireless lines in deployment while Charter said it had around 310,000. Analysts, however, suspect that after paying network leasing bills to Verizon, neither operator makes money on their respective mobile service. Apparently, the companies are interested in acquiring spectrum to possibly create—perhaps jointly—their own wireless network. The companies are also interested in discussing more favorable MVNO deal, as well as any network equipment or customers that might be divested by T-Mobile and Sprint in order to facilitate approval.