Dish Network Makes $25.5 Billion Offer for Sprint Nextel

Dish Network has made a $25.5 billion offer for Sprint Nextel in an effort to block the carrier's acquisition by Japan's Softbank, reports the WSJ.

Dish said Monday it is offering to pay $4.76 in cash and about $2.24 in Dish stock, based on Friday's closing price, for every share of Sprint. Dish argues that the deal represents a 13% premium to Softbank's complicated proposal to buy 70% of Sprint for $20.1 billion. Sprint shares closed at $6.22 on Friday.

"Sprint is in play," Dish Chairman Charles Ergen said. "We think we've made an offer that's much more compelling than the Softbank transaction."


Sprint's board says it will evaluate the proposal carefully but Softbank had no comment.

Sprint Nextel is the United States' third largest long distance provider by subscribers. It begin offering its customers the iPhone at the end of 2011.

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