{"id":31887,"date":"2012-12-21T09:15:05","date_gmt":"2012-12-21T14:15:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ipwatchdog.com\/?p=31887"},"modified":"2013-08-02T19:55:57","modified_gmt":"2013-08-02T23:55:57","slug":"sprint-acquisition-adds-large-wireless-spectrum-portfolio","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ipwatchdog.com\/2012\/12\/21\/sprint-acquisition-adds-large-wireless-spectrum-portfolio\/id=31887\/","title":{"rendered":"Sprint Acquisition adds Large Wireless Spectrum Portfolio"},"content":{"rendered":"
Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S<\/a><\/strong>), the wireless powerhouse, has announced that they have entered into an agreement that will allow them to acquire the remaining shares of the wireless broadband provider Clearwire Corporation (NASDAQ: CLWR<\/a><\/strong>). Sprint already owns approximately 50% of the shares, and will buy out the rest for $2.97 a share, which equates to $2.2 billion paid to the remaining shareholders. This buyout will bring Clearwire\u2019s total value to roughly $10 billion, which includes the $5.5 billion debt Clearwire currently has.<\/p>\n Sprint Nextel previously went by the name of Sprint Corporation until 2005 when merged with Nextel Communications. They offer a wide range of wireless services and serve over 56 million customers. The acquisition of Clearwire, in conjunction with what Sprint already owns, will help solidify Sprint\u2019s position in the competitive wireless industry.<\/p>\n Clearwire Corporation is one of the leading providers of wireless broadband services. They offer services in most areas of the United States, and currently hold the biggest wireless spectrum portfolio. They offer services through their own CLEAR brand, as well as through other companies like Sprint and NetZero.<\/p>\n [Google_468_60]<\/p>\n A quick search of USPTO records via FreePatentsOnline identifies Clearwire as the assignee of at least the following 10 patents:<\/p>\n Dan Hesse, CEO of Sprint Nextel, stated that the Clearwire transaction: \u201cmarks yet another significant step in Sprint\u2019s improved competitive position and ability to offer customers better products, more choices and better services. Sprint is uniquely positioned to maximize the value of Clearwire\u2019s spectrum and efficiently deploy it to increase Sprint\u2019s network capacity. We believe this transaction, particularly when leveraged with our SoftBank relationship, is further validation of our strategy and allows Sprint to control its network destiny.\u201d<\/p>\n [Google_468_60]<\/p>\n This transaction was universally approved by Clearwire\u2019s Board of Directors atop the recommendation by a special committee that consisted of disinterested directors that were not appointed by Sprint. Clearwire CEO and President Erik Prusch stated that, \u201cOur board of directors has been reviewing available strategic alternatives over the course of the last two years. In evaluating available alternatives, a special committee conducted a careful and rigorous process, and based on the committee\u2019s recommendation, our board unanimously determined that this transaction, which delivers certain and attractive value for our shareholders, is the best path forward.\u201d<\/p>\n Sprint has also gained the support of shareholders Intel Corp, Comcast Corp and Bright House Networks LLC, who collectively own about 13 percent of the voting shares. However, not all the shareholders were so compliant to start. Crest Financial, which has a 6.6% stake in Clearwire, had previously stated that they would take the necessary action to protect Clearwire\u2019s shareholders from Sprint\u2019s \u201cunfair\u201d offer. Mount Kellett Capital Management, which has a minor share in the company, is in agreement with Crest Financial and warned Clearwire against selling itself at such a discounted price.<\/p>\n The transaction has been approved, but is still subject to customary closing conditions which include regulatory approvals and approval from the stockholders. It is also contingent on the finalization of Sprint\u2019s transaction with SoftBank, a Japanese telecommunications company that in investing $20.1 billion in Sprint, and will own approximately 70% of the company. The Sprint\/SoftBank transaction is set to close mid-2013.<\/p>\n With the acquisition of Clearwire, Sprint stands to gain a lot in terms of money and status. After merging with Nextel and now buying out Clearwire, Sprint seems to be securing itself as a big power player in the wireless communications industry.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S), the wireless powerhouse, has announced that they have entered into an agreement that will allow them to acquire the remaining shares of the wireless broadband provider Clearwire Corporation (NASDAQ: CLWR). Sprint already owns approximately 50% of the shares, and will buy out the rest for $2.97 a share, which equates to $2.2 billion paid to the remaining shareholders. This buyout will bring Clearwire\u2019s total value to roughly $10 billion, which includes the $5.5 billion debt Clearwire currently has.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10867,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[228,3],"tags":[5201,4914,5204,964,5202,4450,5203,4586],"yst_prominent_words":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipwatchdog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31887"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipwatchdog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipwatchdog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipwatchdog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10867"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipwatchdog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31887"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ipwatchdog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31887\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipwatchdog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31887"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipwatchdog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31887"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipwatchdog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31887"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipwatchdog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=31887"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n