T · News · 20261106N

Competition and New Entrants

AT&T INC. · 2026-11-06 · Importance 17 · Surprise 24

Third-party reports said SpaceX was considering acquiring EchoStar-owned Boost Mobile, which leases network capacity from AT&T and T-Mobile. The reports said the carriers could cut off Boost’s network access if ownership changes, citing change-of-control restrictions in typical network-leasing contracts. Deutsche Telekom CEO Tim Höttges estimated that building a U.S. wireless carrier able to compete with AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon would require at least €200 billion ($223 billion), with spectrum access and tower costs among the hurdles.