AT&T pulls bid for T-Mobile, industry shakeup still possible

The murky waters of federal regulation and industry backlash proved too difficult for AT&T to overcome in its bid to purchase competitor T-Mobile USA from Germany-based Deutsche Telekom.

After fighting to push its proposed $39 billion takeover of T-Mobile through the regulatory process, AT&T ran into a roadblock in the form of the Federal Communications Commission. The organization spoke out against the proposed transaction on several occasions, and the heat became too much for AT&T to handle, apparently.

The company withdrew its bid to purchase T-Mobile in a move that will effectively keep AT&T the second-largest provider of wireless services in America. Had it acquired T-Mobile, the company would have leapfrogged industry leader Verizon Wireless.

"For us, it is difficult to understand how a transaction that would have contributed significantly toward the realization of the U.S. national broadband plan to expand the geographic availability of fast Internet could be blocked," Deutsche Telekom CEO Rene Obermann told the New York Times. "Neither [the FCC nor the Justice Department] appeared willing to back down from its fundamental opposition, despite concessions to modify the scope and structure of the transaction."

However, a shakeup of the wireless industry didn't necessary die along with this deal, according to multiple reports. It's not impossible that T-Mobile and Deutsche Telekom could turn to another competitor in Sprint to forge a new deal.

That would certainly be an ironic twist to this ongoing saga, as Sprint CEO Dan Hesse was among the most vocal opponents of the AT&T takeover of T-Mobile. Throughout the approval process, Hesse had said that industry consolidation would stifle innovation and ultimately hurt subscribers.

Of course, all this drama going on within the industry will have an impact on companies and their wireless expense management programs. This may be especially true for those practicing a bring-your-own-device method of managing employees combined with mobility stipends.

In footing at least some of the bill for mobility, any company would be concerned with which carrier or plan its employees are using. And the uncertainty in the industry doesn't appear to be easing the concerns of mobility administrators. But experts agree that a robust mobile device management solution will ensure that a program is meeting its goals.