AT&T Inc. (T) may seek to acquire Dish Network Corp., the second-largest U.S. satellite-TV company, to gain wireless spectrum after failing to purchase T-Mobile USA and its airwaves, Stifel Nicolaus & Co. said.
The second-largest U.S. mobile carrier is “desperate for spectrum” after regulatory opposition forced it to abandon the $39 billion T-Mobile bid, said Christopher King, a Stifel Nicolaus analyst in Baltimore. AT&T had to give up spectrum as part of a breakup fee from the deal’s collapse.
Dish bought bankrupt companies DBSD North America Inc. and TerreStar Networks Inc. this year for their spectrum licenses. The Englewood, Colorado-based company may be AT&T’s best chance at enhancing its wireless network, and a deal would probably be allowed by regulators, King said. Dish (DISH) rose 8.3 percent, the most since May, to $27.23 at 12:10 p.m. New York time.
Full story: ‘Desperate’ AT&T May Turn to Dish: Stifel – Bloomberg.