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 Dish and T-Mobile US shares were up 8 percent and 12.8 percent
respectively in premarket trade on Thursday, while those of
T-Mobile's majority owner Deutsche Telekom were up 1.3 percent --
the only rise among German blue-chip stocks.
A deal, which has been mooted in the past, would fit with Deutsche
Telekom's stated interest in partnerships to strengthen its U.S.
business after failing to sell it last year. It would also join a
wave of tie-ups in the telecoms and TV industries as companies look
to add services for customers.
Representatives at Dish and T-Mobile US did not immediately respond
to emails seeking comment outside regular U.S. business hours. A
spokesman for Deutsche Telekom, which owns about 66 percent of
T-Mobile US, declined to comment.
The two sides have agreed T-Mobile Chief Executive John Legere would
serve as the CEO and Dish CEO Charlie Ergen would become the
combined company's chairman, the Journal said, citing people
familiar with the matter. (http://on.wsj.com/1KaQWjw)
However, a purchase price and the structure of the deal are still
undecided, the newspaper said.
T-Mobile has a market capitalization of about $31 billion, while
Dish's is around $33 billion.
"It is clear that Deutsche Telekom is looking for future prospects
in the United States," a source close to Deutsche Telekom's
management board told Reuters, adding it had no knowledge of talks
between T-Mobile US and Dish.
Dish and T-Mobile US have previously floated the possibility of a
deal. Ergen said earlier this year he was "impressed" by T-Mobile
US, while Legere said it made sense for T-Mobile US to team up with
Dish.
Dish, a surprise winner in the record-setting U.S. sale of airwaves
for mobile data in January, has amassed wireless spectrum and
recently went into streaming TV to offset the loss of pay-TV
subscribers. However, what Dish plans to do with the newly-acquired
spectrum remains unclear.
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T-Mobile US has been looking to buy spectrum from smaller rivals,
according to media reports.
The company has turned around years of subscriber losses with
cut-price deals, marketing and wireless plans in recent quarters.
While these initiatives have led to customer gains, they have
pressured T-Mobile US's margins.
Last year, Deutsche Telekom tried to sell T-Mobile to Sprint Corp
but the No.3 U.S. carrier dropped its bid after regulatory
resistance. French operator Iliad SA also abandoned its attempt to
buy T-Mobile US last October.
T-Mobile US's rival AT&T Inc is close to wrapping up its $49 billion
deal for Dish competitor DirecTV, while Charter Communications Inc
is seeking to remake the U.S. cable television industry by acquiring
larger rival Time Warner Cable Inc for $56 billion.
(Reporting by Supriya Kurane in Bengaluru and Peter Maushagen and
Christoph Steitz in Frankfurt; Editing by Anupama Dwivedi, Jason
Neely and Mark Potter)
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