U.S. Justice Department 'Leaning Against' Approving T-Mobile/Sprint Merger

The United States Justice Department is "leaning against" approving the merger between T-Mobile and Sprint, reports Bloomberg.

The merger might not be approved because the two companies "don't go far enough" to resolve antitrust concerns raised by the U.S. government.

sprinttmobile
Bloomberg's report comes shortly after United States Federal Communications Chairman Ajit Pai said that he would recommend approval of the merger between Sprint and T-Mobile.

T-Mobile and Sprint have implemented changes to their merger to allay concerns, including the sale of Boost Mobile, a three-year buildout of a 5G network, and a pledge not to raise prices while the network is being built, but these steps may not be enough to earn approval.

Back in April, there were reports suggesting the DoJ had told Sprint and T-Mobile that the merger would not be approved as it was originally structured, which prompted the plans to sell Boost Mobile.

Sprint and T-Mobile first announced a merger agreement in April 2018, but the completion of the merger requires the government to approve the deal. A merger between Sprint and T-Mobile would combine two of the four major carriers in the U.S., and it would use the T-Mobile name.

The two companies would have close to 100 million customers, putting it second only to Verizon. The U.S. DoJ is concerned the deal would be a major threat to competition.

Sprint and T-Mobile planned to have the merger completed no later than the first half of 2019, but that date was pushed back to late July earlier this year.

Popular Stories

WWDC25 Live Coverage Feature 1

WWDC 2025 Apple Event Live Keynote Coverage: iOS 26, macOS Tahoe, and More

Monday June 9, 2025 9:00 am PDT by
Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) starts today with the traditional keynote kicking things off at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time. MacRumors is on hand for the event and we'll be sharing details and our thoughts throughout the day. We're expecting to see a number of software-related announcements led by a design revamp across Apple's platforms that will also see the numbering of all of...
maxresdefault

Everything Apple Announced at WWDC 2025 in 9 Minutes

Monday June 9, 2025 5:21 pm PDT by
At today's WWDC 2025 keynote event, Apple unveiled a new design that will inform the next decade of iOS, iPadOS, and macOS development, so needless to say, it was a busy day. Apple also unveiled a ton of new features for the iPhone, an overhauled Spotlight interface for the Mac, and a ton of updates that make the iPad more like a Mac than ever before. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel ...
liquid glass

Apple Announces All-New 'Liquid Glass' Software Redesign Across iOS 26 and More

Monday June 9, 2025 10:13 am PDT by
Apple today announced a complete redesign of all of its major software platforms called "Liquid Glass." Announced simultaneously for iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, tvOS, visionOS, and CarPlay, Liquid Glass forms a new universal design language for the first time. At its WWDC 2025 keynote address, Apple's software chief Craig Federighi said "Apple Silicon has become dramatically more powerful...
iPadOS 26 Apple Newsroom

Apple Says iPadOS 26 is Compatible With These iPad Models

Monday June 9, 2025 11:22 am PDT by
Apple today announced that iPadOS 26 will be compatible with the iPad models listed below. iPadOS 26 features a new Liquid Glass design, a menu bar, improved app windowing, and more. iPadOS 26 supports the following iPad models:iPad Pro (M4) iPad Pro 12.9-inch (3rd generation and later) iPad Pro 11-inch (1st generation and later) iPad Air (M2 and later) iPad Air (3rd generation and...
iPhone Car Key WWDC 2025

Apple Says These 13 Vehicle Brands Will Soon Offer iPhone Car Keys

Monday June 9, 2025 2:38 pm PDT by
In 2020, Apple added a digital car key feature to its Wallet app, allowing users to lock, unlock, and start a compatible vehicle with an iPhone or Apple Watch. The feature is currently offered by select automakers, including Audi, BMW, Hyundai, Kia, Genesis, Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, and a handful of others, and it is set to expand further. During its WWDC 2025 keynote today, Apple said that 13...
Apple WWDC25 iOS 26 hero 250609

Apple Announces iOS 26 With 'Liquid Glass' Design, Live Translation, Overhauled Phone App, and More

Monday June 9, 2025 11:00 am PDT by
Apple at WWDC announced iOS 26, introducing a comprehensive visual redesign built around its new "Liquid Glass" concept, alongside expanded Apple Intelligence capabilities, updates to core communication apps, and more. Liquid Glass is a translucent material that reflects and refracts surroundings to create dynamic, responsive interface elements, according to Apple. The new design language...

Top Rated Comments

btrach144 Avatar
79 months ago
Wow, this is turning into a drama. Personally, I think it should be approved. Sprint will fail soon. Why let them turn into dust?
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
rk-apple Avatar
79 months ago
I normally don’t like big mergers. But this one I am for. I think AT&T and Verizon are not focused enough on the consumer. T-Mobile gets it. My family of four saves easily $60 per month with T-mobile over AT&T. And much better customer service. The merger should help T-Mobile compete.

And, T-mobile’s 5G service runs very much differently than that of AT&T or Verizon. That is good competition, and the merger should strengthen T-Mobile’s ability to compete in the 5G future.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
alexandr Avatar
79 months ago
how exactly? t-mobile is actually the one carrier that is making vz and att give customers more bang for their buck.


The U.S. DoJ is concerned the deal would be a major threat to competition.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jlseattle Avatar
79 months ago
Haha, they didn't pay the right people the right amount of money. The orange monster needs more money! Maybe this is a shot across the bow of the telecoms to pony up more money and favors for approval.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Breaking Good Avatar
79 months ago
If FCC approves and DOJ doesn't I would suspect the next stop is court where the DOJ would have to explain how this affects competition.

I'm looking forward to hearing the DOJ explain how consumers would be helped if Sprint failed as a business.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Baymowe335 Avatar
79 months ago
Good. These wireless companies have too much pricing power.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)