US: Mississippi will back Sprint, T-Mobile merger and backs out of court case

One of 17 US states that sued to block a proposed US$26.5 billion tie-up of Sprint and T-Mobile agreed to drop the challenge after reaching a deal with the companies, reported Reuters.

Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood said in a statement he will withdraw from the legal challenge over the planned merger of the third- and fourth-largest US wireless carriers. He said the combined company has agreed within three years to deploy a 5G network in Mississippi with at least 62% of the state’s general and rural populations having access to high-speed service.

Hood said the prior merger agreement did not include any specific commitments benefiting Mississippi. The company agreed that for at least five years it will offer an unlimited talk, text and 2GB data plan for US$15 per month and a US$25 per month plan for 5GB of data.

“The world around us is almost fully digital, but Mississippi is lagging behind with internet deserts across the state,” Hood said. “My agreement with T-Mobile will help fill this gap.” 

T-Mobile Chief Executive John Legere wrote on Twitter the company was “thrilled” Hood “withdrew from the states’ lawsuit after learning more about ALL the amazing benefits the New T-Mobile will deliver to US consumers!” 

Full Content: Reuters

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