Sprint Gets Acquired by… Who?
There was a ton of speculation surrounding Sprint Nextel (NYSE:S) earlier in the year, both as a buyer, and a buyee. The wireless service provider was widely expected to buy Clearwire (NASDAQ:CLWR) or another smaller wireless name, or possibly even be acquired by an Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) or a Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT).
While CLWR might yet happen (and soon), the acquisition that happened wasn’t one that had ever been hypothesized — Japan’s biggest wireless carrier, Softbank, plunked down $20.1 billion to own 70% of Sprint.
The acquisition gives the Japanese company its first foothold in North America, but it’s a deal that appears to offer nowhere near as much synergy as any of the other possibilities offered.
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