Sprint Raises Clearwire Offer

Sprint today raised its bid for Clearwire from $3.40 per share to $5.00 per share, besting Dish Network's offer of $4.40 per share by 14%. Following the raised offer, Clearwire's board of directors has accepted the new bid and recommends that Clearwire's shareholders vote in favor of Sprint's proposal and not Dish's. In addition to the raised offer, Sprint also agreed to pay Clearwire a $115 million termination fee if the deal falls through under certain circumstances. According to Clearwire, Sprint's offer has the backing from a significant percentage of Clearwire's shareholders, including Comcast, Intel, and Brighthouse Networks, among others. Sprint hopes this final offer will give it the approval it needs among Clearwire's remaining investors. Earlier this week, Sprint filed a lawsuit against Dish seeking to prevent it from acquiring Clearwire after Clearwire's board recommended Dish's proposal be accepted. Dish has yet to respond to this latest move from Sprint.


Source: Clearwire

Sprint Improves Clearwire Bid, Says Its 'Best And Final Offer'

Sprint entered into an agreement to buy the remaining 50 percent of Clearwire that it doesn't already own for $2.97 per share, or around $2.2 billion. This morning Sprint announced that it's decided to up its bid to $3.40 per share, putting Clearwire at a value of $10.7 billion. Sprint says that this is its "best and final offer" for Clearwire and that it's bid is the "best strategic alternative" for Clearwire and its shareholders.

This improved Sprint bid bests the offer that Dish Network made for Clearwire in January 2013, which was set at $3.30 per share. While it remains to be seen which offer Clearwire will ultimately take, things definitely appear to be leaning in Sprint's favor. Not only does Sprint now have the higher bid, it also has the support of Clearwire's Special Committee and its board of directors. What's more, Sprint says that it's been told by Comcast, Intel and Bright House Networks that they all plan to vote their shares of Clearwire in favor of Sprint's merger. Those three companies own a total of approximately 26 percent of Clearwire.

Source: Sprint