U.S. Poised to Approve Merger of T-Mobile, Sprint

Apparently, the Department of Justice is poised to approve T-Mobile’s merger with Sprint under a divestiture plan that would equip satellite-TV operator Dish Network with the building blocks for a new wireless network. The companies have spent weeks negotiating with antitrust enforcers and each other over the sale of assets to Dish to satisfy concerns that the more than $26 billion merger of the No. 3 and No. 4 wireless carriers by subscribers would hurt competition. Dish has agreed to pay $5 billion for wireless assets --  about $1.5 billion for prepaid mobile businesses and roughly $3.5 billion for spectrum. Under the terms of the deal, Dish can’t sell the assets or hand over control of the agreement to a third party for three years, apparently. Dish would also get a multiyear agreement to use the wireless companies’ network while it builds dedicated infrastructure. The DOJ could announce a settlement with the companies as soon as July 25, but the timing remains uncertain. The merger still faces a legal challenge from several state attorneys general.