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Department of Justice and FCC voice support for T-Mobile and Sprint’s merger in new court filing

In the midst of the T-Mobile-Sprint merger trial, both the Department of Justice and the Federal Communications Commission have reiterated their support for the deal. Both the DOJ and FCC have filed court papers saying that the states’ lawsuit to block the merger would undo consumer benefits that were gained by the government during its review of T-Mobile and Sprint’s deal. One example given by the agencies is improved service in rural parts of the country. … [read full article]

FCC report says T-Mobile, other carriers overstated their coverage maps

A new FCC report says that T-Mobile and other U.S. carriers misrepresented their rural coverage. The FCC conducted drive tests of T-Mobile, Verizon, and U.S. Cellular’s networks and found that they only achieved the minimum download speeds predicted by those carriers’ coverage maps 62.3% of the time. T-Mobile specifically achieved that speed in 63.2% of tests, Verizon in 64.3% of tests, and U.S. Cellular just 45.0% of tests. According to the report, FCC staff was unable … [read full article]

T-Mobile and Sprint’s merger gets approval from the FCC

Two months after FCC Chairman Ajit Pai recommended that T-Mobile and Sprint’s merger be approved, that’s precisely what has happened. The FCC has voted to formally approve the T-Mobile-Sprint merger. There’s no official announcement of this news quite yet, but an FCC official has confirmed to The Verge that the agency has voted to give the merger the green light. We learned earlier this month that T-Mo and Sprint’s deal had reportedly gotten majority FCC … [read full article]

FCC commissioner says T-Mobile-Sprint merger must be paused due to Lifeline investigation

Sprint has come under fire this week for an issue related to Lifeline subsidies, and it could have an effect on the carrier’s merger with T-Mobile. The FCC has learned that Sprint claimed monthly subsidies for 885,000 Lifeline subscribers, but those subscribers weren’t actually using the Lifeline service. This resulted in Sprint receiving tens of millions of dollars for customers who weren’t actually using any of Sprint’s service. “It’s outrageous that a company would claim millions … [read full article]

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai formally recommends approval for T-Mobile and Sprint’s merger

The opposition to T-Mobile and Sprint’s merger grew this week as Oregon joined a lawsuit to block the deal, but today there’s some good news for T-Mo and Sprint. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai today formally recommended that the T-Mobile-Sprint merger be approved. Pai has submitted a draft order to the other FCC commissioners who will vote on whether or not to approve it. “After one of the most exhaustive merger reviews in Commission history, the … [read full article]

Dish said to appeal to Deutsche Telekom for T-Mobile-Sprint deal as negotiations continue

T-Mobile and Sprint haven’t been talking publicly about their merger much lately, but the rumor mill is working to keep up in the loop with leaks and other info. Dish Network chairman Charlie Ergen is reportedly in talks with U.S. regulators and T-Mobile parent company Deutsche Telekom about a deal that would see Dish become a competitive fourth U.S. carrier, satisfying the Department of Justice and helping T-Mobile and Sprint’s merger get approval. According to [read full article]

FCC Chairman again voices support for T-Mobile-Sprint merger, calls lawsuit against it ‘misguided’

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has once again voiced his support of T-Mobile and Sprint’s merger. Speaking to the New York State Wireless Association recently, Pai talked about 5G and how the FCC is working to accelerate its deployment in the U.S. One of the pillars of T-Mobile and Sprint’s merger is how they plan to use their combined spectrum to deploy a nationwide 5G network, and Pai said during his remarks that “one of the … [read full article]

Dish reportedly wants FCC spectrum use deadline waived in exchange for buying T-Mobile-Sprint assets

Much of the focus on T-Mobile and Sprint’s merger lately has been on Dish Network and its Chairman Charlie Ergen. Ergen was rumored to be ready to spend $6 billion on assets from T-Mo and Sprint in a move that’d help the merger’s odds of gaining approval from the Department of Justice, but now some say that he’s not close to striking such a deal. Now another report with more info on Ergen’s intentions has … [read full article]

FCC Commissioner Rosenworcel says she’s ‘uncomfortable’ with review of T-Mobile-Sprint merger

Last month we saw FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr come out in support of T-Mobile and Sprint’s merger following the announcement of commitments from the two carriers. FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel didn’t feel the same way about the deal, saying she had “serious doubts” about it, and this week she touched a bit more on the merger and the support its gotten from her fellow FCC Commissioners. During a press conference after … [read full article]

FCC says carriers can block robocalls by default

A new FCC ruling could help to reduce the number of robocalls you get every day. Today the FCC voted to affirm that carriers can block robocalls by default. While T-Mobile and other carriers already offer robocall blocking services, today’s ruling means that carriers are able to block unwanted robocalls by default using reasonable call analytics, so long as customers are informed and able to opt-out of the blocking. The ruling also states that carriers … [read full article]

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