The Podium
Blog posts tagged with 'Dish'
Monday, April 22
By Brad
Last week, satellite TV provider DISH announced it was making a play to purchase wireless provider Sprint for a price just north of $25 billion, or some $5 billion more than Japanese provider SoftBank had offered to buy the carrier. And as Phil Goldstein of Fierce Wireless reports, DISH is taking a patriotic angle to promote its bid:
Dish said its offer for Sprint “is better for the American consumer, better for Sprint’s shareholders, and better for U.S. national security than the SoftBank proposal.”
Dish’s comments are likely a reference to concerns about foreign ownership of domestic telecommunications companies as well as specific concerns that Sprint could use equipment from Chinese vendors ZTE and Huawei in its network.
Goldstein also reports that Sprint has formed a “special committee on its board” to go through DISH’s offer.
Monday, April 15
By Brad
For years now, satellite TV provider Dish Network has been making noises about jumping into the wireless game. Now, Peter Svensson of the Associated Press reports, they’ve put together a blockbuster deal:
Dish Network Corp. is trying to snag U.S. wireless carrier Sprint Nextel Corp. away from its Japanese suitor in recognition of the way satellite dishes are losing their relevance in the age of cellphones that play YouTube videos.
Dish offered $25.5 billion in cash and stock on Monday for Sprint, which Dish says beats the offer from Japan’s Softbank Corp. Softbank is offering $20 billion in cash, and shareholders get to keep 30 percent of Sprint. Dish is offering $17.3 billion in cash, and Sprint shareholders get 32 percent of the combined Dish-Sprint.
Sprint already leads all other U.S. carriers when it comes to spectrum holdings, so its combination with Dish — which currently controls a lot of spectrum of its own — may be a big hurdle with regulators. Still, given the pokiness of regulatory relief when it comes to wireless and spectrum, proposed deals such as this one shouldn’t be surprising. Stay tuned.
Friday, January 04
By Brad
At Light Reading, Jeff Baumgartner reports satellite provider Dish is still looking for help in order to build out a wireless LTE network:
Dish Network Corp. acknowledges it needs a partner to make its Long Term Evolution (LTE) dreams come true, but there are no hints as to who that might be. “We need a [wireless industry] partner, that much we know,” Dish CEO Joseph Clayton tells the Denver Business Journal. “Who it is remains to be seen.”
Potential partners for Dish, Baumgartner writes, are AT&T and T-Mobile.
Wednesday, December 12
By Brad
Speaking of deals — and LTE buildout — courtesy of Alex Fitzpatrick of Mashable, satellite provider Dish Network received some good news of its own yesterday:
Dish Network, the company you’re most likely familiar with as a provider of satellite television, has been trying for years to get government approval for its plans to build a nationwide LTE network. After extensive negotiations, the company’s LTE plans got the go-ahead from the Federal Communications Commission late Tuesday night.
The FCC unanimously approved Dish’s plan, which calls for using the company’s satellite network to build a new LTE network to compete with those of Verizon Wireless, AT&T and other companies.
“These actions will help meet skyrocketing consumer demand and promote private investment, innovation and competition, while unlocking billions of dollars of value,” said an FCC spokeswoman said in an e-mailed statement.
One of the FCC’s requirements for approval, interestingly, was that Dish must reach 70% of buildout on its network within six years.
Monday, November 19
By Brad
Last week, a rumor was floating around that Google and Dish were looking to team up in order to build a wireless network. Today, Sara Portlock and Shalini Ramachandran of the Wall Street Journal report the FCC may soon grant Dish the ability to use some of its spectrum holdings to build out a cellular network. There’s a catch, however:
The Federal Communications Commission is close to approving a swath of the satellite airwaves controlled by Dish Network Corp. for use solely on a ground-based cellphone network, FCC officials say. But Dish Chairman Charlie Ergen isn’t likely to be happy.
That’s because the FCC is also seriously considering requiring Mr. Ergen to restrict a slice of his airwaves, or spectrum, as a barrier to protect against interference on a neighboring spectrum band, the officials say. Mr. Ergen in an interview Thursday said such a move “would be a game changer for us,” making his bet to enter the wireless industry “increasingly risky.”
Wednesday, March 21
By Brad
Via Andy Vuong of the Denver Post, the FCC is set to tackle Dish’s plans to enter the mobile broadband market this week:
The federal rulemaking process that will determine when or whether Dish Network can use its recently acquired spectrum for a competitive mobile broadband network is expected to kick off Wednesday and could be completed by summer’s end, according to Dish executives.
The Douglas County-based company also estimates that building a new network could cost $5 billion and take three years or longer, though a joint project with a wireless carrier could significantly trim both.
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