As the proposed AT&T-T-Mobile merger sits in regulatory and legal purgatory, DISH Network might be ready to step in and team with T-Mobile to help the fourth-largest U.S. carrier to better compete with its bigger rivals.
DISH has freshly acquired spectrum thanks to some M&A activity earlier this year, and CEO Joseph Clayton says his company is ready to capitalize on that. A partnership with T-Mobile or even Sprint could be a good move for the satellite TV provider, Clayton told Bloomberg. That is, assuming AT&T's bid to buy T-Mobile fails.
Clayton said DISH doesn't want to make money by selling spectrum, but in fact wants to "create a national wireless network, video voice and data." He says DISH needs help with the voice expertise, and that's where T-Mobile would come in. Sprint, the nation's third largest carrier, might be another option.
DISH, Clayton told the business website, still wants to be a player if the AT&T-T-Mobile merger is approved. The satellite company would be interested in buying assets from the two carriers if regulators force them to do so under merger conditions. DISH has opposed the merger on the grounds that it would create an anticompetitive marketplace, but feels it can come out a winner in either scenario.
