Deutsche Telekom to not sell T-Mobile USA unit

Their have been rumors in the market for long that the Deutsche Telekom was considering selling off their USA division of mobile services under the brand name T-Mobile USA. The company has now confirmed that they are not planning to sell this brand and would instead work on expanding its US based wireless unit by introducing better services in many more markets in the country.

CEO Kai-Uwe Ricke said in a statement: “There is no reason for a sale. On the contrary, we are now in the process of preparing for the next step. That includes taking part in the tender for new (wireless) spectrum.” He added: “America is and remains a growth engine for us.” The company has also confirmed this report.

Just last month Ricke was quoted in the media saying that he was keeping all the options open for the T-Mobile USA unit and that included selling it off to a potential buyer. Market analysts were supportive of this plan considering the US based wireless service provider lack a substantial 3G network and faced competition from bigger rivals like Sprint and Verizon Communications.

T-Mobile USA had 19.2 million customers as of June 30, compared with 51.6 million customers for Cingular, jointly owned by SBC Communications and BellSouth; 47.4 million for Verizon Wireless; and 26.6 million for Sprint. And it would require some major investment from the parent company to help the company reach a position where it can give some competition to other companies.