Which Telecom Giants Will Merge Next? > T-Mobile owner DT may buy Sprint & merge them

Deutsche Telekom has called in banking advisers to study a possible multi-billion dollar bid for Sprint Nextel, the third-largest mobile phone operator in the US.

Sources said Deutsche Telekom (DT) could submit a bid for Sprint, which has a market valuation of $10.6bn (£6.3bn), within the next few weeks.

Combined, T-Mobile, the fourth-placed operator, and Sprint, the third biggest player, would closely challenge AT&T's second-place spot with 78.2m customers.

DT has been investing $1bn a year in improving its US network, but will need to spend far more to integrate Sprint, which runs on a different type of network. However, it could be easier to integrate the networks when they are upgraded to fourth generation status.

It is thought DT will also consider copying its approach to
T-Mobile UK by merging its US operation with Sprint.