Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum announced today that Oregon will join the multistate lawsuit blocking the anticompetitive megamerger of telecommunications giants T-Mobile and Sprint. T-Mobile US Inc. and Sprint Corporation are the third and fourth largest mobile wireless networks in the U.S., and are the lower-cost carriers among the “Big Four”, including Verizon Wireless and AT&T. Intense competition, spurred by T-Mobile and Sprint, has meant declining prices, increased coverage, and better quality for all mobile phone subscribers.

“It’s important that Oregon join other states in opposing the Sprint-T-Mobile merger,” said Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum. “If left unchallenged, the current plan will result in reduced access to affordable wireless service in Oregon — and higher prices. Neither is acceptable.”

“Oregon’s addition to our lawsuit keeps our momentum going, and ensures that there isn’t a single region of this country that doesn’t oppose this anticompetitive megamerger,” said New York Attorney General Letitia James. “We welcome Attorney General Rosenblum to our 16-member coalition that now includes states representing almost half of the U.S. population. We remain committed to blocking the merger of T-Mobile and Sprint because it would bad for consumers, bad for workers, and bad for innovation.”

Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum is the 16th Attorney General to challenge the merger of T-Mobile and Sprint. The original lawsuit », filed June 11, 2019, is led by New York Attorney General Letitia James, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, and includes the Attorneys General of New York, California, Texas, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nevada, Virginia, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.

The Oregon Department of Justice’s antitrust team brings strong antitrust expertise and experience to the multistate legal team. As a state with major metropolitan centers and rural areas, and a diverse economy, geography, and population, Oregon reflects the widespread nature of the harm that is likely to result from the anticompetitive merger of T-Mobile and Sprint.

T-Mobile currently has more than 79 million subscribers, and is a majority-owned subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom AG. Sprint currently has more than 54 million subscribers, and is a majority-owned subsidiary of SoftBank Group Corp.

The Oregon Department of Justice (DOJ) is led by Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum, and serves as the state’s law firm. The Oregon DOJ advocates for and protects all Oregonians, especially the most vulnerable, such as children and seniors.