French Telco Iliad Gives up On Acquiring T-Mobile → As much as I oppose mega mergers

As much as I oppose mega mergers I think AT&T is the best buyer for T-Mobile since they are both GSM carriers and integrating the existing customers would be a seemless transition. That idea was shot down a few years ago.

T-Mobile is free to shut down and cease operations if they can't find a buyer in the states. It's deal with Tell and Tell (as grandma refers to the old AT&T as) or that $649 iPhone is a nice paperweight as its provisioned for to be defunct T-mobile should they be unable to find a buyer and simply cease US operations.

T-MUS is not going to shut down over this. Revenue is up 15% from last quarter and they are turning a profit, they are self sufficient and have not depended on the AT&T Free Money in a while.

Customer numbers continue to grow, the network modernization is progressing at a blistering pace.

Stockholders are really a fickle bunch, you cannot decide the performance over their whims. Apple stock goes for roller coaster rides like this whenever product launches happen.

Worst case scenario would be if DT really wants out for good, and finally gives up trying to sell for a good price and lets it go to CenturyLink or Frontier, or one of the cable MSO's.

The network has a lot of value in the customer base, equipment, spectrum. It wont be thrown away.

I have a feeling DT may decide to just stick with it, if they really really wanted out they would have took the low-ball Illiad offer.

While big corporate guys are not the gods most people think they are and in their majority a bunch of pretentious crooks with giant elbows, giant mouths and giant penises, at this point of time it should be clear to DT that keeping TMO US is the best possible decision. They could have sold to the French for the improved offer if they really wanted to.

I think they didn't sell because the offer wasn't what they wanted. I think they are placing all this value on T-Mobile US when there really isn't all that much.

Everyone is moving to LTE. At&t and T-Mobile are abandoning GSM and Verizon and Sprint are abandoning CDMA. In 10 years there won't be this CDMA vs GSM stuff. It will all be LTE.