One of the concessions that T-Mobile is willing to make to get its merger with Sprint approved is a sale of Boost Mobile. We’re still waiting to see if the deal will gain approval from regulators, but if it does, T-Mo may already have a buyer for Boost.
Amazon is rumored to be considering buying Boost Mobile from T-Mobile and Sprint if their merger is approved. Reuters sources say that Amazon is mainly attracted to the attached wholesale deal that would let Boost’s new owner use the T-Mobile network for at least six years.
Today’s report also mentions that Amazon would be interested in any spectrum that T-Mobile might divest as part of its merger. Earlier today, a rumor claimed that T-Mobile and Sprint are considering divesting some spectrum to boost their merger’s odds of DOJ approval, and that spectrum would be sold by the government to help create a fourth competitor in the U.S. wireless market.
The DOJ would examine the buyer of T-Mobile and Sprint’s divested assets to ensure it would remain viable and competitive.
While Amazon’s motivations behind buying Boost Mobile aren’t known, T-Mobile has regularly touted how much better its network will be if it’s allowed to merge with Sprint, and so it’s understandable that a company would be interested in a wholesale deal that’d give it access to that network for several years. With that boost from T-Mo, perhaps Amazon thinks it might like to try its hand at becoming a U.S. carrier.
Source: Reuters