The major buyout deal between Sprint and Japanese telecommunications
provider Softbank is one step closer to finalized. The U.S. Department
of Justice approved the deal, handing it over for approval by the
Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
In October 2012, Softbank offered Sprint $20 billion for a 70 percent
stake in the company. Deal conversations were brought to a halt,
however, when the concerns about national security were brought up. In
March, regulators began to voice their concerns about Chinese spyware slipping into U.S. networks
through the Softbank relationship. Later, in January, the DOJ,
alongside the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security, launched an
investigation into the deal, further stunting its process through FCC
approvals.
That investigation didn't seem to rustle up much, as the DOJ approved the deal Friday in a letter the FCC.
In the letter, the DOJ explained that it analyzed the “measures” Sprint
and Softbank have taken to ensure national security as well as the
supply chain. It’s now the FCC’s turn to green light the deal, and
Softbank is seemingly confident. The company released a statement in
April saying it believes the deal will be finalized by July, and that it’s deal is better than a second offer Sprint received from Dish Networks during the DOJ’s investigation.
The U.S. cable provider topped Softbank’s offer, saying it would pay $25.5 billion for majority control of the company. If Softbank’s timeline is correct, we assume we’ll hear more about Sprint’s interest in the Dish deal soon.
Source: Washington Post
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