merger

AT&T's chances of completing its $39 billion acquisition of T-Mobile USA are quickly fading as regulatory opposition to the deal mounts and the wireless giant's efforts to keep the deal on track smell of desperation.

The merger, announced in March, has been in trouble since this summer when the U.S. Department of Justice sued AT&T to block the deal. But things got uglier last week when the Federal Communications Commission said it would try to block the deal. Even though AT&T has vowed to fight on, it looks like the company … Read more

AT&T's chances of closing its $39 billion deal to buy T-Mobile USA are looking pretty slim as the FCC chairman officially expresses opposition to the deal. But how long will AT&T fight to keep the merger alive?

On Tuesday, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski began circulating a draft order recommending to the other four FCC commissioners that the agency refer the case to an administrative law judge.

While details of the chairman's report assessing the merger have not been made public, officials told reporters on a conference call that in 99 out the … Read more

The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission doesn't believe that AT&T's proposed $39 billion deal to acquire T-Mobile USA is in the public interest. And he's asking the other four commissioners to approve an administrative hearing, in which AT&T would have to prove otherwise.

The Wall Street Journal first reported on Tuesday that Chairman Julius Genachowski was considering such action.

The move by the chairman would put yet another hurdle in the way of the merger, which is already being challenged by the U.S. Department of Justice. The DOJ has filed a … Read more

Motorola Mobility's shareholders have overwhelmingly voted to approve Google's $12.5 billion acquisition of the company.

During a special stockholders meeting today, about 99 percent of the shares voting today approved adoption of the merger agreement, the company said. Those shares represent approximately 74 percent of the company's outstanding common shares.

"We are pleased and gratified by the strong support we have received from our stockholders, with more than 99 percent of the voting shares voting in support of the transaction," Motorola Mobility CEO Sanjay Jha said in a statement.

The merger was originally expected … Read more

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder told lawmakers today that the Justice Department's antitrust division is "ready and eager" to pursue its lawsuit and stop AT&T's acquisition of T-Mobile USA.

Holder said the division is "committed to seeing this through," Reuters reported today. Holder was speaking at an oversight meeting with the Judiciary Committee's antitrust panel.

In August, the Justice Department sued to block the proposed $39 billion merger, putting the brakes on what many in the industry assumed to be a done deal. The Justice Department cited concern over competition … Read more

The merger between AT&T and T-Mobile USA would create more than 100,000 jobs in the United States, a major telecommunications union said today, again putting its weight behind the deal.

The Communications Workers of America said a new analysis has found that the deal, which would combine the second- and fourth-largest U.S. wireless carriers, would create an additional 96,000 jobs, alongside the 5,000 outsourced jobs AT&T has pledged to bring back.

The CWA also lashed out at opponents of the deal, noting that their concerns over lost jobs stemmed from "sloppy … Read more

The regulatory scrutiny is starting to get to AT&T and its bid to acquire T-Mobile USA.

AT&T disclosed in its quarterly regulatory filing that it now expects the deal to close in the first half of 2012, compared with its previous target of the first quarter. The Dow Jones Newswires was the first to report the change.

The regulatory scrutiny has also caused it to push back the target date for its acquisition of spectrum from Qualcomm. AT&T now expects that deal to close in the first quarter of 2012, rather than the end … Read more

A federal judge today allowed Sprint Nextel and C Spire to continue with its lawsuit to block the merger between AT&T and T-Mobile USA.

AT&T and T-Mobile had attempted to dismiss the lawsuit. But Judge Ellen Huvelle allowed both companies to persist with their lawsuits, which claim they would be squeezed by market pressures if the consolidation were to be allowed, according to Reuters. Part of the lawsuits, however, were dismissed. The lawsuits could further complicate the deal, which already faces opposition in the form of a lawsuit from the Justice Department.

"Both Sprint and … Read more

Sprint Nextel lost out in a bid to obtain AT&T documents that would have provided the third-largest U.S. wireless carrier with additional ammunition in its battle to stop AT&T's acquisition of T-Mobile USA.

Reuters reported that U.S. District Judge Ellen Huvelle denied Sprint's request for the documents, which would have also given the company valuable insight into rival AT&T's operations. Huvelle also heard arguments by AT&T seeking to dismiss lawsuits filed by Sprint and regional carrier C Spire in an attempt to block the T-Mobile deal. She … Read more