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Wednesday, January 9, 10:45 AM "It's hard for me to imagine that what Dish wants is Clearwire ... It could be a chess move to get a partnership with Sprint," opines Bernstein's Craig Moffett. Jefferies and Macquarie also think Dish's (DISH +2.1%) $3.30/share offer for Clearwire (CLWR +7.7%) is an attempt to cut a deal with Sprint (S -1.4%), long named as a potential 4G partner but currently in the midst of selling itself to SoftBank (SFTBF.PK). Macquarie adds a $3.50-$3.75/share Sprint bid might be needed to get Dish and dissident shareholders to back down. PCS +1.8%. LEAP +0.9%. 7 Comments [Tech, On the Move, M&A]
Sunday, January 6, 2:33 AM Crest Financial, which owns 8% of Clearwire (CLWR), intends to ask the FCC to block Sprint's (S) acquisition of the approximately 50% of Clearwire it doesn't own and the sale of 70% of Sprint to Japan's Softbank. Crest says the $2.2B Sprint-Clearwire deal "grossly undervalues Clearwire" and therefore the operator's spectrum holdings, which would hurt government revenue from auctions of licenses. The Crest request would add to one from Dish (DISH). 6 Comments [Tech, Consumer]
Thursday, January 3, 12:52 PM Sprint (S +0.1%) is making a push to grab mobile users who don't want to get locked into a 2-year contract, but also want subsidized hardware. The carrier's "pay as you go" solution offers a $50/month unlimited voice/data plan for buyers of two feature phones, and a $70/month non-LTE voice/data plan for buyers of two mid-range Android phones that go for $150 and $250. This might be a sign of things to come, given SoftBank's (SFTBF.PK) willingness to use aggressive pricing to gain share. 1 Comment [Tech]
Friday, December 21, 2012, 6:19 PM It looks like Dish Network (DISH) wants to fight the Sprint/Clearwire (S, CLWR) merger: Dish, just cleared to offer 4G services, has petitioned the FCC for more time to file an objection to the deal. Among other things, Dish suggests the FCC look at the "competitive effects" of Sprint/Clearwire's spectrum position, and the fact the spectrum will be controlled by a foreign company (SoftBank). Also: BTIG's Walter Piecyk has joined activist investors in arguing Clearwire is worth a lot more than the $2.97/share Sprint is offering. (filing - PDF) 2 Comments [Tech, M&A]
Tuesday, December 18, 2012, 1:05 PM Sprint (S) has brought its LTE network to Indianapolis and 5 other markets, and expanded coverage in the Chicago area. The carrier, which is scrambling to catch up to Verizon and AT&T, says it now has 49 markets covered. Also, Sprint has disclosed Clearwire (CLWR) will receive a $120M termination fee if the SoftBank (SFTBF.PK) deal doesn't go through. FierceWireless' Roger Entner notes the Clearwire purchase will make Sprint America's largest spectrum holder, and wonders if the FCC (more concerned lately with AT&T/Verizon) will scrutinize the deal 4 Comments [Tech]
Monday, December 17, 2012, 6:07 PM "With 20/20 hindsight, the Nextel merger was a mistake," states Sprint (S +0.2%) CEO Dan Hesse in a fairly candid interview. Hesse also admits Sprint had allowed its customer service to deteriorate, and that changing consumer perceptions will take time. As you'd expect, he still remains worried about AT&T and Verizon's market clout, SoftBank (SFTBF.PK) and Clearwire (CLWR) deals or not. "Five years ago I wouldn’t have called them a duopoly. Today they’re darn close." (previous) 1 Comment [Tech]
Monday, December 17, 2012, 11:39 AM MetroPCS (PCS -2.2%) has sold off following news Clearwire's board has approved the full sale of the company to Sprint. Shares had already slumped this month on a Reuters report Sprint is unlikely to make a bid for the carrier before the SoftBank deal closes, something that could preclude an offer from happening before MetroPCS' planned merger with T-Mobile USA goes through. Comment! [Tech, On the Move]
Friday, December 14, 2012, 11:18 AM It would be "an absolute outrage" for Clearwire (CLWR -0.8%) to be sold at Sprint's (S -0.8%) $2.90/share offer price, declares 3.6% activist Clearwire owner Mount Kellett in a letter to the board. To further demonstrate its commitment to fighting for a higher bid, Mount Kellett assigns Clearwire a value of $6.30/share based on some back-of-the-envelope math that values the carrier's spectrum at $18B. Fellow activist investor Crest Financial is also intent on receiving a higher offer. (earlier) (Nov. letter) 5 Comments [Tech, On the Move]
Friday, December 14, 2012, 3:02 AM Softbank (SFTBF.PK) and Sprint (S) look set for a battle of wills with some of Clearwire's (CLWR) minority shareholders, who want $5-8/share for the 48.3% of the company that Sprint doesn't own. That's well above the latter's offer of $2.90, which it made yesterday, and a cap of $2.97 that Softbank has reportedly set. In case Sprint's bid fails, Clearwire is in talks about other strategic alternatives. (previous) 2 Comments [Tech]
Thursday, December 13, 2012, 6:11 PM For Sprint (S -0.4%) to acquire the 48% of Clearwire (CLWR +14.5%) it doesn't own, it needs the support of shareholders representing over half of non-Sprint-owned shares. That could be tough without a higher bid, given activist investors Mount Kellett and Crest Financial own 14% of Clearwire, and continue to argue Clearwire is worth more. But the fact Clearwire is saddled with over $4.2B in debt and has a major 4G LTE buildout ahead of it gives Sprint some leverage. Stifel: "It’s Sprint or nobody ... [Clearwire is] losing money hand over fist." (previous: I, II) 5 Comments [Tech, M&A]
Thursday, December 13, 2012, 9:33 AM Clearwire (CLWR +12.5%) soars to to $3.10 on news of Sprint's (S -1.1%) $2.90/share offer. Wells Fargo views Sprint's initial bid as a starting point for negotiations, and so, apparently, do many others. At $0.17/MHz.-pop, other spectrum deals have involved 50%+ premiums to the implied value of Sprint's offer, the firm notes. Though not 100% comparable, Verizon's cable spectrum purchases cost $0.68/MHz-pop. 3 Comments [Tech, M&A, On the Move]
Tuesday, December 11, 2012, 12:10 PM Sprint (S -1%) and Clearwire (CLWR +13.1%) are "moving closer" to a deal in which the former would buy the 49% of the latter it doesn't own, sources tell David Faber. He adds Sprint has been talking with Clearwire shareholders about buying their stakes for ~$3/share, and that a deal could be announced by year's end. Clearwire has spiked to $2.72, while MetroPCS (PCS -1%) has ticked lower. PCS was clocked last week after Reuters reported Sprint is unlikely to make a bid before its SoftBank (SFTBF.PK) deal closes. Update: The WSJ backs up Faber's report. 2 Comments [Tech, On the Move, M&A]
Friday, December 7, 2012, 11:24 AM Some Asian Apple (AAPL -1.8%) news: 1) The iPad Mini has launched to sparse crowds in China. The regular iPad controlled 71% of the Chinese tablet market in Q3, according to Analysys. 2) China Unicom (CHU) took over 200K iPhone 5 pre-orders in its first 2 days of availability. Unicom is fully subsidizing the phone to those who make a $947 deposit. 3) NTT DoCoMo (DCM) is facing more pressure to strike an iPhone deal (previous): the top Japanese carrier lost 40.8K subs in November to rivals SoftBank and KDDI. Apple's Japanese sales rose 113% Y/Y in FQ4. 7 Comments [Tech]
Tuesday, December 4, 2012, 9:21 AM MetroPCS (PCS) -7.2% after 3 sources tell Reuters Sprint (S) is unlikely to make an offer for the discount carrier in the near-term, out of concern it would complicate the regulatory review of the SoftBank (SFTBF.PK) deal. Sprint could revisit a MetroPCS bid after the SoftBank deal closes, but with the T-Mobile/MetroPCS deal expected to close somewhere in 1H13, and Sprint and SoftBank shooting for a mid-2013 close, Sprint might not have much time. LEAP -1.6%. (previous) Comment! [Tech, On the Move, M&A]
Friday, November 30, 2012, 1:00 PM MetroPCS (PCS +3%), Leap Wireless (LEAP +4.3%), and Clearwire (CLWR +8.1%) are higher after a Guggenheim Securities analyst writes Sprint (S -0.6%) could make a $12-$13/share bid for MetroPCS in the next 4 weeks. Speculation debt-laden Sprint will try to grab MetroPCS from T-Mobile has been around for a while, aided by the fact SoftBank's (SFTBF.PK) CEO has said he won't rule out an offer. Also: Chat on the Street has passed on a (somewhat questionable) rumor Carlos Slim is talking with Clearwire. Comment! [Tech, On the Move, M&A]
Friday, November 16, 2012, 2:23 PM The U.S. mobile industry might not be done consolidating: T-Mobile USA (DTEGY.PK) is open to making new deals one it finishes merging with MetroPCS (PCS), says CTO Neville Ray. SoftBank (SFTBF.PK), on the verge of taking a controlling interest in Sprint (S), has also suggested it's willing to make additional moves. Leap Wireless (LEAP) is a name that inevitably comes up whenever U.S. mobile consolidation is a subject. 1 Comment [Tech, M&A]

SFTBF.PK Softbank Corp Ord

SFTBF.PK

Softbank Corp Ord