New York attorney general will not appeal T-Mobile-Sprint merger ruling

By Hilary Russ

NEW YORK (Reuters) – New York Attorney General Letitia James said on Sunday the state will not appeal a judge’s approval of the $40 billion merger between U.S. wireless carriers T-Mobile US Inc (O:) and Sprint Corp (N:).

Instead of continuing to pursue the case in court, James said her office hopes “to work with all the parties to ensure that consumers get the best pricing and service possible, that networks are built out throughout our state, and that good-paying jobs are created here in New York.”

The merger between the third- and fourth-largest U.S. wireless carriers was agreed in April 2018, but was prevented from closing by U.S. states challenging it in court on antitrust grounds. A U.S. federal judge gave the companies the green light on Tuesday to complete the deal.

The office of California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, which alongside New York led the case with a group of other states, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on New York’s decision.

The 11 other states and District of Columbia in the group also did not immediately reply to requests for comment.

In her statement, James said that the “process has yielded commitments from T-Mobile to create jobs in Rochester and engage in robust national diversity initiatives that will connect our communities with good jobs and technology.”