Report: VoiceStream proposes merger with Cingular

IDG News Service - VoiceStream Wireless Corp., the U.S. wireless subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom AG, has proposed a merger with rival Cingular Wireless, according to a report today in the online edition of The Wall Street Journal.
Though talks between the two companies are still at an early stage, a merger between Bellevue, Wash.-based VoiceStream and Atlanta-based Cingular would make the joint company either the largest wireless carrier in North America or a close second to Verizon Wireless in Bedminster, N.J., the report said.
Deutsche Telekom in Germany declined to comment on the report. Representatives of VoiceStream and Cingular couldn't immediately be reached for comment.
Under the proposed terms of the merger, Cingular, which is jointly owned by SBC Communications Inc. in San Antonio and BellSouth Corp. in Atlanta, would become the controlling shareholder of the two companies, the report said. SBC owns 60% of Cingular, and BellSouth owns 40%, according to the Cingular Web site.
The news of a possible merger between VoiceStream and Cingular comes a month after reports that AT&T Wireless Services Inc. in Redmond, Wash., had entered into discussions to acquire VoiceStream (see story).
Talks between AT&T Wireless and VoiceStream are continuing, though they are tenuous in nature, according to the The Wall Street Journal.
Verizon Wireless, estimated to be worth between $10 billion and $15 billion, has 30.3 million subscribers. A combined Cingular-VoiceStream would have 30.2 million, the report said.