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Federal Regulators Seek More Information As They Consider Sprint-Nextel Merger

Posted on: Thursday, 12 May 2005, 00:00 CDT

May 12--Federal regulators have asked for additional information as they consider the planned merger between Sprint Corp. and Nextel Communications Inc.

The Federal Communications Commission asked Sprint, Nextel and competitors such as Cingular, Verizon Wireless and Alltel Corp. for data, including the number of subscribers they have, the specific calling plans they use and how much they pay.

The commission asked that the companies submit the information by May 20.

Such an information request is not unusual in merger transactions, said James Fisher, a Sprint spokesman. Federal officials sought similar data, he said, when considering the merger of Cingular and AT&T Wireless.

Sprint and Nextel's top executives have said they expect to receive approval late in the summer. This new request from the communications commission is not expected to cause any delays in that timeline, Fisher said.

"We appear to be on track," Fisher said.

In a separate action Wednesday, Sprint issued a notice that it intends to put the merger proposal before its shareholders. Anyone holding Sprint stock at the close of business on May 20 will be eligible to vote at the annual meeting.

The Overland Park company has not set a date or location for the meeting.

Sprint and Nextel plan to combine in a $35 billion merger. It would position them as the nation's No. 3 wireless carrier, behind No. 1 Cingular and No. 2 Verizon.

Sprint shares were up 21 cents Wednesday, closing at $22.17. Nextel shares were up 18 cents, closing at $28.17.

In another development, Sprint has agreed to sell its telephone conferencing business to Omaha-based West InterCall for $207 million in cash.

About 100 Sprint employees in Lenexa and Atlanta will transfer to West InterCall, said Jennifer Bosshardt, a Sprint spokeswoman. Few, if any, employees will be required to move, she said.

About two-thirds of Sprint's conferencing employees work in Lenexa. The deal is expected to close within 30 days.

Sprint's conferencing mainly serves corporate customers, setting up telephone, video and Web conferences.

The move is the latest by the Overland Park telecommunications company to sell assets not considered core to Sprint's business.

The sale of assets such as its wireless towers earlier this year and its directory business in 2003 has allowed Sprint to pay off part of its debt. The company has also built up its cash reserves, which totaled about $3.7 billion at the end of the first quarter.

As part of the deal, Sprint and West InterCall will jointly market conferencing services.

The deal will benefit Sprint conferencing customers, Bosshardt said. West InterCall will be able to offer Sprint customers advanced conferencing services.

West InterCall is owned by West Corp., which operates call centers, conferencing services and receivables management services for Fortune 1000 clients. West bought InterCall in 2003, making it the world's third-largest conferencing company.

By Jason Gertzen and David Hayes

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FON, NXTL,

Source: The Kansas City Star (Kansas City, Missouri)

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