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Bidding war over Sprint Nextel Corp. heating up

Thu, 09 May 2013 20:51:00 +0000

NEW YORK (AP) -- The chairman of satellite broadcaster Dish Network Corp., which is trying to buy Sprint Nextel Corp., is daring Sprint's other suitor to raise its bid.

Dish's Charlie Ergen told investors and reporters Thursday that based on the benefits Japan's Softbank says it would get from buying Sprint, it should be paying a higher price.

Last week, Softbank's CEO Masayoshi Son said Dish's $25.5 billion offer for Sprint is based on "incomplete and illusory" numbers, and argued that Softbank's $20.1 billion offer for 70 percent of the company is a better value.

Softbank can close the deal up to a year faster than Dish and brings industry expertise and cash to Sprint, he said. In addition, the combined Softbank and Sprint would be a huge purchaser of phones and network equipment, which should help it secure volume discounts, he said.

Ergen said Thursday that if Softbank is really confident in its calculations, "they would look at paying quite a bit more for Sprint than we have offered so far."

"Realistically, the curtain is now up on Sprint, both Dish and Softbank see tremendous value there. Shareholders are going to be the winners, and who knows where this goes," Ergen said.

Dish: Sprint’s debt is manageable

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 20:20:00 +0000

NEW YORK (AP) — Dish Network's combative chairman, Charlie Ergen, on Tuesday defended his $25.5 billion bid for Sprint Nextel, saying the debt load the deal would create for the combined company will be manageable.

"We will take on more leverage than we have today," Ergen said in an interview with the Associated Press. "But it's not excessive. In today's market, at today's rates, it's certainly not excessive leverage."

Ergen himself is the largest shareholder in Englewood, Colo.-based Dish Network Corp., the country's third-largest pay-TV provider.

"I have the most to lose. I have obviously thought about this," Ergen said.

After five years of buying of wireless spectrum and trying to create partnerships with cellphone companies, Ergen on Monday unleashed his biggest bet yet, an unsolicited offer for Overland Park, Kan.-based Sprint Nextel Corp., the country's third-largest cellphone company. Sprint has already agreed to sell 70 percent of itself to Softbank Corp. of Japan, a deal Dish is trying to head off.

The deal is driven by technology trends, which are leaving behind one-way TV services like Dish. By buying Sprint, Ergen wants to give Dish a future as a provider of TV content, inside and outside the home.

Dish Network offers to buy Sprint for $25.5 billion

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 17:08:00 +0000

NEW YORK (AP) -- Dish Network Corp. is trying to snag U.S. wireless carrier Sprint Nextel Corp. away from its Japanese suitor in recognition of the way satellite dishes are losing their relevance in the age of cellphones that play YouTube videos.

Dish offered $25.5 billion in cash and stock on Monday for Sprint, which Dish says beats the offer from Japan's Softbank Corp. Softbank is offering $20 billion in cash, and shareholders get to keep 30 percent of Sprint. Dish is offering $17.3 billion in cash, and Sprint shareholders get 32 percent of the combined Dish-Sprint.

Sprint Nextel Corp.'s stock jumped on the news, as investors started looking forward to a bidding war between Dish and Softbank. Sprint had accepted the Softbank offer and was expecting to close on it this summer. Sprint, the country's third-largest cellphone carrier, said it would evaluate Dish's offer.

Charlie Ergen, Dish's executive chairman, has been looking for a way into the wireless world for years. Dish has been buying space on the airwaves for cellphone service or wireless broadband. The Englewood, Colo., company has tried to partner with cellphone companies to put its spectrum rights to use, but has been repeatedly rebuffed.

Best androids for your phone plan

Sun, 02 Dec 2012 17:00:00 +0000

It's not the best time to buy a new Android phone, but it's always a complicated situation with how many models come out every month, so here we go.

If you need a new phone today, and you are on T-Mobile, get the new LG Nexus 4. Get the Samsung Galaxy S III if you're on Sprint. If you're on Verizon, get the Droid DNA unless you want a stupendous battery, in which case the get Droid Razr Maxx HD. On AT&T, get the HTC One X+ if you don't mind the lack of reviews. But if your current phone still works, it's best you wait.