Sprint Faces 4G Dilemma

Sprint Nextel Corp. has bet its future on offering speedy data services to mobile devices over a new high-speed, "4G" network and has joined with upstart Clearwire to build it. But Clearwire has a problem: It needs billions of dollars to finish building its nationwide network. And now Sprint, which owns 54% of Clearwire, must decide whether to fund the project itself or turn to a competitor for help.

Sprint's board of directors is debating whether to let rival cellphone operator T-Mobile USA invest in Clearwire. Such a decision would consolidate the U.S. telecom landscape by enabling the country's third- and fourth-largest wireless operators to use the same next-generation network.