US Probe of T-Mobile-Sprint Deal Was ‘Cursory,’ States Say

States suing to block T-Mobile's proposed acquisition of Sprint urged the federal judge overseeing the landmark antitrust trial not to defer to the Trump administration’s approval of the $26.5 billion deal. Lawyers for NY and CA, which are leading the lawsuit for the states, said in a filing late Jan 8 that the deal’s approval by the Justice Department and the Federal Communications Commission doesn’t carry any special weight and should be ignored by the judge. “The federal government approved the merger with what appears to be only a cursory examination of the approval conditions,” the states said, and the decision was “inconsistent” with its past opposition to consolidation in the wireless market.