Sprint Seals the Deal in Clearwire Buyout for $2.2 Billion

[dgstorm]

Last week we shared that Sprint was planning to finish buying out a full 100% stake in Clearwire, their wireless broadband partner. At the time, Sprint already owned a 51% stake in the company and wanted to complete a full takeover so they can utilize Clearwire's spectrum holdings as they see fit. Sprint originally offered Clearwire's remaining shareholders a $2.1 Billion dollar bid for the company. Several of these shareholders moved to hinder the deal because they wanted to hold out for more. As it turns out, they weren't holding out for much more. Sprint and Clearwire announced the full 100% buyout deal will now go through for $2.2 Billion dollars. Here's a quote with a few more details,

“Clearwire’s spectrum, when combined with Sprint’s, will provide Sprint with an enhanced spectrum portfolio that will strengthen its position and increase competitiveness in the U.S. wireless industry” the carrier said in a statement on the deal today. “Sprint’s Network Vision architecture should allow for better strategic alignment and the full utilization and integration of Clearwire’s complementary 2.5 GHz spectrum assets, while achieving operational efficiencies and improved service for customers as the spectrum and network is migrated to LTE standards.”

Sprint will also provide Clearwire with up to $800m of financing, which will be handled in the form of exchangeable notes with staggered purchasing over the ten months from January 2013. That financing can be used by Clearwire for developing its network.

Of course, this deal is still not 100% set in stone. It is contingent upon regulatory approval, and it will only happen if SoftBank's proposed 70% acquisition of Sprint goes through. This deal also has to jump through some regulatory hurdles as well. Deals within deals... the corporate way.

Source: SlashGear