Sprint, Nextel to become one Friday

Sprint and Nextel Communications said today they will culminate their $36 billion merger deal on Friday, Aug. 12, now that all regulatory and internal hurdles have been overcome.

The new company, called Sprint Nextel will begin trading Monday on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “S.” Sprint has agreed to spin off its local exchange carrier business as part of the deal, and a spokesman said Sprint Nextel will begin filing for approval at the state regulatory commissions in the coming months.

Sprint and Nextel received final approval from the FCC last week after the Federal Trade Commission raised no objections to the deal. The two regulators got off relatively easily considering the requirements the FCC has imposed on merger and acquisition deals in the past. Sprint and Nextel are not required to sell off any licenses, the FCC having found only a handful of markets where the combined company would dominate. But as a condition of pooling their combined 2.1 GHz and 2.5 GHz Broadband Radio Service (BRS) spectrum, the FCC is requiring the new company to have a broadband wireless network covering 15 million people by 2009 and covering 30 million people by 2011.

Monday will mark the end of the eight-month acquisition process, and while Sprint’s ranking among the U.S. wireless carriers will remain at No. 3, the company will elevate itself to mega-operator status. The combined company will have 43 million subscribers and a 22% U.S. market share as well as control Sprint’s sizable IXC operations.

Sprint today also announced the launch of a new streaming radio service over its CDMA 1X and EV-DO networks. Partnering with IP music provider MSpot, Sprint has launched 17 streaming music channels, which can be received by any of Sprint’s Java-enabled phones. The commercial-free channels come in variety of formats, from Latino pop to jazz to hip-hop, and are integrated with a music storefront allowing users to order CDs or download ringtones and screensavers. Sprint will charge $5.95 a month for the service.