10 states plan to block Sprint-T-Mobile merger



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NEW YORK (AP) – A group of 10 attorneys general, chaired by New York and California, has filed a lawsuit to block T-Mobile's offer on Sprint, for $ 26.5 billion. dollars, citing the harm done to consumers.

State GAs say the merger would hurt competition and drive up prices for mobile services.

This is an unusual step before a decision by the federal antitrust authorities. The decision of the Department of Justice is pending. The Republican majority of the Federal Communications Commission supports the agreement.

Businesses say they need to bundle their resources to switch to a fast and powerful "5G" mobile network competing with Verizon and AT & T. Companies appeal to President Donald Trump's desire to see the United States " win a world race of the 5G.

Consumer advocates and several Democratic lawmakers are concerned that the deal will result in job cuts, higher wireless prices and a negative impact on the mobile phone market in rural areas.

T-Mobile and Sprint announced their merger more than a year ago, claiming that their combined portfolios and their "spectrum" holdings, or the waves that transmit cell phone signals, could lead to a better fit. 5G network than what one or the other company could build alone. This is an assessment on which several Wall Street analysts have subscribed. The United States is in a politically sensitive race with China to be on top as this technology is developed and implemented.

The two companies had already tried to regroup under the Obama administration, but the regulators rejected them. They resumed talks on consolidation once President Donald Trump took office, hoping to have more pro-industry regulators.

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