T-Mobile, UScellular Pitch Merger to FCC

WASHINGTON, September 16, 2024 – T-Mobile’s purchase of the nation’s fourth largest wireless carrier won’t hurt consumers, the company told federal regulators Friday.

The $4.4 billion deal would see T-Mobile acquire all 4 million of UScellular’s customers and about a third of the company's spectrum. UScellular will hang on to its nearly 4,400 towers and enter new 15-year lease agreements with T-Mobile on 2,015 of them, as well as extend leases on the 600 towers where T-Mobile is already a tenant.

“UScellular’s current rate plans are generally more expensive than comparable rate plans offered by T-Mobile. Following the Transaction, UScellular customers will have the opportunity to pay the same or less for higher quality service than either UScellular or T-Mobile offers today,” the companies wrote in an application sent to the Federal Communications Commission Friday and posted Monday.