Nextel

Sprint Nextel's plan to spin off its WiMax network and form a $14.5 billion joint venture with Clearwire may have hit a speed bump.

On Monday iPCS, Sprint Nextel's largest affiliate, said it will try to block the deal that was announced last week. iPCS, which serves 640,600 subscribers in seven states, said three of its subsidiaries have filed suit in Cook County Circuit Court in Illinois against Sprint for violating an exclusivity contract.

Sprint Nextel is spinning off its 2.5 GHz assets to form a joint venture with Clearwire. The new company, called Clearwire, … Read more

Sprint Nextel subscribers continue to jump ship, as the company's sales decline and losses widen.

The company has been struggling for several quarters as customers have complained of poor service, especially from its Nextel division. Sprint bought Nextel for $35 billion in 2005, and the merger has largely been a failure, costing the company billions of dollars to integrate while causing the company to also lose millions of newly dissatisfied customers. Many Nextel customers have complained of poor service and a lack of handset choices.

Investors have been pushing the company to sell assets and focus on its core … Read more

The deal to merge Sprint Nextel's WiMax business unit with Clearwire to build a nationwide 4G network is finally complete, but the newly formed company could be doomed before it even gets out of the gate.

On Wednesday the companies said they would combine the two entities to form a new company, called Clearwire. Cable companies Comcast, Time Warner, and Bright House Networks, along with technology giants Intel and Google, are contributing a combined $3.2 billion, bringing the total investment in the company to $14.5 billion.

In many ways the new venture is a win-win situation for … Read more

Sprint Nextel and Clearwire are combining network assets to build a new nationwide 4G wireless network that the companies say has huge benefits for each of them.

Until now, Sprint and Clearwire have been on separate paths to build nationwide broadband wireless networks using WiMax, an IP technology that can blanket entire cities and provides more than five times the speed of 3G wireless networks. Now they are joining forces and creating a new company that will have access to more wireless spectrum than any other company in the entire country.

Cable operators Comcast, Time Warner Cable, and Bright House … Read more

Qwest Communications International is ending its relationship with Sprint Nextel and has struck a new deal to resell wireless service through Verizon Wireless.

The company said Monday that it plans to resell wireless service from Verizon Wireless starting this summer. The companies have signed a five-year contract. Financial terms of the deal weren't disclosed.

Qwest has been reselling Sprint's wireless service since 2004 under its own brand. A spokesman for the phone company said it will continue to service customers on the Sprint network until its contract expires with Sprint in February 2009. Current customers will be given … Read more

Update at 4:07 a.m. PDT on Wednesday, May 7: This article has been updated to reflect the official announcement.

Sprint Nextel and Clearwire will create a new joint venture that will combine both companies' WiMax assets to create a nationwide broadband wireless network, the companies said Wednesday.

The deal, which will be valued at about $14.5 billion, is being backed by cable operators Comcast and Time Warner, as well as Intel and Google.

News of the deal was earlier reporter in The Wall Street Journal.

The new joint venture has raised a total of $3.2 billion … Read more

Is Sprint Nextel getting ready for a fire sale?

It sure looks that way following speculation around Wall Street on Monday of a possible sale or breakup of the beleaguered wireless operator. First, The Wall Street Journal reported that German phone company Deutsche Telekom was considering buying the company. Later the same day, another Wall Street Journal article cited sources who said Sprint Nextel is considering unloading its Nextel assets, a move that might make the $22.3 billion wireless operator more attractive to potential buyers.

While a Deutsche Telekom sale seems like a long shot, it's not surprising … Read more

Sprint Nextel on Thursday announced that is has tapped former Eastman Kodak executive Robert Brust, 64, to be its next chief financial officer.

The beleaguered wireless carrier, which hired a new CEO at the end of last year, has made several management changes as it tries to get its business back on track. It has been struggling to retain customers since its 2005 merger with Nextel.

In January, Sprint said it was searching for a new finance chief. Company controller William Arendt has been acting as interim CFO since Paul Saleh left that position in January.

Brust has a long … Read more

Comcast said Wednesday it has changed its mind on a joint wireless communication venture with Sprint-Nextel, according to a Reuters report.

The service, called Pivot, was begun as a partnership between the cable giant, Sprint, Time Warner, Cox Communications, and Advanced/Newhouse Communications in 2006. It offered a package of services, including TV, broadband, and both a landline and wireless phone service.

"We decided to discontinue the service because the product required a lot of operational complexities, so we decided it wasn't the approach we wanted for the long term," said a Comcast spokesperson.

Well, that's … Read more