State AG's fight against T-Mobile, Sprint merger says October trial may not be possible

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A lawyer for the public prosecutor general who filed a lawsuit hoping to stop T-Mobile's $ 26 billion merger with Sprint, the judge told Monday that a October 7 test may not be possible.

In a letter to Judge Victor Marrero on Monday, Attorney Glenn Pomerantz said that in exchange for the expedited October 7 trial date, states had been promised materials on a settlement between the Justice Department and the companies by June 28. Since the government and the companies have not reached a settlement, these materials are not available.

"Plaintiffs engaged in discussions yesterday with the defendants regarding the proper trial date and schedule of trials and continue to persuade the defendants," wrote Pomerantz in the letter.

In its lawsuit filed in June, public prosecutors generally claimed that the agreement would cost consumers over $ 4.5 billion annually.

To win over the Justice Department, which is not involved in the lawsuit, T-Mobile and Sprint have agreed on a number of agreement concessions, including the sale of prepaid brand Boost.

Companies are negotiating to sell Boost to Dish, but are spreading over issues such as who can buy the divested assets if they are sold in the future, with T-Mobile and Deutsche Telekom trying to prevent them from going cable or technology company.

T-Mobile is about 63% owned by Deutsche Telekom.

The companies told the court in late June that they were willing to abstain from closing the agreement after the public prosecutor's general case was completed.

Pomerantz, in another letter dated Monday to another court member, expressed doubts that any deal with the Justice Department would satisfy the states.

"Although it is highly unlikely that any solution between the Defendant and the USDOJ could hinder the competitive damage caused by the proposed merger, there is no doubt that the settlement would dramatically change the nature of the evidence needed for the trial," he wrote.

The two companies have a July 29 to complete the deal, but are expected to expand it.

The companies told the court in late June that they were willing to abstain from closing the agreement after the public prosecutor's general case was completed.

The chief commission's chief has given his blessing to the merger in principle and is expected to circulate a formal order within weeks.