[telecom] AT&T Ends $39 Billion Bid for T-Mobile

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AT&T Ends $39 Billion Bid for T-Mobile

By MICHAEL J. DE LA MERCED DECEMBER 19, 2011

AT&T on Monday ended its effort to buy T-Mobile USA, acknowledging that it could not overcome stiff opposition by the Obama administration to form the nation's biggest cellphone service provider.

The decision to scrap the $39 billion takeover - which would have been the biggest deal of the year - is a major setback for AT&T, which had pinned its hopes for growth on the acquisition. The company wanted T-Mobile's cellular airwaves, or spectrum, to relieve its congested network and offer faster service for data-hungry devices like the iPhone.

And the deal's end leaves T-Mobile, the weakest of the four national operators, with an uncertain future.

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