Sprint Considering Sale or Spinoff of Nextel: WSJ
Sprint Nextel
The report said Cyren Call, a company founded by Nextel founder Morgan O'Brien, is trying to assemble a consortium of investors to acquire Nextel.
Sprint could also choose to spin off Nextel into a separate company, it said, but added that sources said no deal was imminent. Sprint shares launched more than 12 percent higher Monday.
A Sprint spokesperson declined to comment.
Deutsche Telekom Deal?
Earlier Monday, German newspaper Der Spiegel reported that Deutsche Telekom was considering buying Sprint. The paper, which did not cite sources, said a deal is Deutsche Telekom's biggest priority, but that no formal approach has been made.
The possibility of a takeover is attractive because of the strength of the euro against the dollar and Sprint Nextel's relatively low market capitalization of $22 billion, the paper said.
Deutsche Telekom declined to comment.
A deal would combine the No. 3 and No. 4 wireless carriers in the U.S. Deutsche Bank already owns No. 4 player T-Mobile.
Some analysts were skeptical that a merger could go through.
It would be "crazy" for Deutsche Telekom to purse such a deal, one analyst told CNBC Europe.
T-Mobile and Sprint Nextel would not be technologically compatible, T-Mobile margins are still quite healthy as a standalone, and U.S. regulators would likely block the deal, the analyst said.
"It is doubtful that the United States would allow a large part of its mobile phone infrastructure to fall into foreign hands," a trader said. "It is also open whether the German government as largest Telekom shareholder would support the Americanization of the company."
But another analyst told CNBC Europe that a low price could trump any concerns and justify elevated costs for consolidating technologies. The move would also fit into Deutsche Telekom's non-German market share expansion strategy, the analyst said.
- Reuters contributed to this report.