AT&T wants competition lawsuits dismissed

wireless behemoth, AT&T has urged the federal court in Washington to dismiss lawsuits brought against it by rivals Sprint Nextel and Cellular South. Both firms are arguing that AT&T's proposed $39 billion purchase of T-Mobile from Germany's Deutsche Telekom would be anti-competitive, reports The Inquisitr.

AT&T, which is also facing a civil antitrust lawsuit from the US Department of Justice, is claiming its competitors have failed to demonstrate that the T-Mobile deal will hurt competition or negatively affect access to networks needed to serve their customers.

According to TeleGeography, AT&T's latest filing reads: “Sprint knows that competition will be enhanced, not harmed, by the combination of AT&T and T-Mobile, and that a post-merger AT&T - freed of spectrum shortages that impair its ability to offer customers better services at lower prices - will be a more formidable competitor. What is good for consumers is bad for Sprint, and that is why Sprint has filed suit.”

Sprint does not purchase roaming services from either AT&T or T-Mobile - its network is technologically incompatible. The transaction will therefore have no impact on Sprint's ability to obtain roaming prices.

In a filing regarding the Cellular South case, AT&T said the competitive concerns raised by its competitor were baseless, according to TopTechReviews. AT&T submitted as evidence an e-mail from Hu Meena, Cellular South's president and CEO, which proposes an agreement between the two companies regarding roaming access and spectrum use.

AT&T said it suggested that Cellular South would not oppose the merger if it agreed not to engage in facilities-based competition in Mississippi.