Sprint exec messages suggest T-Mobile deal may boost prices

Messages by a Sprint executive revealed in federal court suggested he thought an acquisition by T-Mobile might push up mobile-service prices for consumers, undercutting T-Mobile's argument that its deal will benefit Americans.

The text messages, presented by attorneys for a coalition of states suing to block the deal on antitrust grounds, were sent in October 2017 by Sprint's chief marketing officer, Roger Sole, to Sprint's then-CEO Marcelo Claure. Sole wrote that customer prices could rise an average $5 per user if a deal went through.

Merger supporters argue that a combined T-Mobile and Sprint will emerge as a fiercer rival to Verizon and AT&T that will help keep prices low.

A group of 14 state attorneys general, led by New York and California, are trying to convince a federal judge that the $26.5 billion deal should be blocked. T-Mobile has already notched approvals from key federal regulators, setting up an unusual situation where states officials are seeking to overturn their federal counterparts.