SK Telecom says no interest in control of Sprint Nextel

Countering media speculation and a sagging stock price, South Korea’s SK Telecom said it was not interested in purchasing ailing U.S. carriers Sprint Nextel Corp. anytime soon.
According to media reports, the Korean telecom giant said it has no plans to buy a controlling stake in any U.S. mobile carrier, putting rumors of a possible purchase of Sprint Nextel to rest. The report also said shares in SK Telecom fell 1.1% to $176.63 on the South Korean exchange after acquisition talks surfaced on a cable news program this week.
Of course, SK Telecom’s comments do not rule out an investment in Sprint Nextel, which some analysts have said might make more sense for both parties involved. Sprint Nextel, which recently spun off its WiMAX business, is said to be in need of a network evolution path for its CDMA-based network and SK Telecom is widely regarded as being at the forefront of network development.
It’s likely that after SK Telecom’s trials with recently sold mobile virtual network operator Helio L.L.C., diving into another U.S. mobile carrier’s not-so-steady forefront is a scary thought. SK Telecom is now the second-largest stakeholder in Virgin Mobile USA, which bought Helio. For now, the report said, SK Telecom will focus on growth overseas and expanding competition.
Representatives from Sprint Nextel and SK Telecom were not immediately available for comment.