SoftBank CEO outlines $16B capital spending at Sprint, plans for Silicon Valley research center

SoftBank plans to invest $16 billion in capital improvements at Sprint in the next two years, CEO Masayoshi Son said. That $16 billion investment will more than double the pace of current capital growth, and most will go to base stations for Sprint's LTE network, Son said.

After the next two years, the pace of investment will slow to about $6 billion a year. Sprint has about 90 cities on LTE today, well behind AT&T and LTE market leader Verizon. Son also said that SoftBank and Sprint will open a joint hardware and software research center in Silicon Valley, employing up to 1,000 workers. Son will be the chairman of Sprint's new board of directors, while Ronald Fisher, head of U.S. Softbank operations, will be deputy chairman. Sprint CEO Dan Hesse and three other Sprint directors will stay on and will be joined by Michael Mullen, former chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff. Son said he's seen "considerable possibility for cutting costs" at Sprint, with up to $3 billion in annual savings by combining SoftBank's Japan purchases of base stations and smartphones with those of Sprint in the US.