T-Mobile makes case to FCC for Mint buyout

Representatives for T-Mobile and Ka’ ena Corporation met with Federal Communications Commission officials to argue why T-Mobile should be able to acquire Mint Mobile and Ultra Mobile from Ka’ ena. According to a June 5 , 2023 filing with the FCC, T-Mobile presented a PowerPoint spelling out why the transaction will not harm the competition or consumers. In fact, T-Mobile said it’s a much easier case than Verizon’s acquisition of TracFone for a number of reasons. The move is notable given that some industry stakeholders advocate for more government scrutiny in T-Mobile’s potential $1.35 billion buyout of the Mint and Ultra brands. Both Mint and TracFone are MVNOs, or mobile virtual network operators, that use the networks of facilities-based carriers. In the case of Mint/Ultra, its customers already are exclusively on the T-Mobile network. Verizon closed on the TracFone acquisition in November of 2021. Mint Mobile serves about 2 million customers and Ultra Mobile has about 500,000 customers, according to T-Mobile’s filing. Mint is distributed almost exclusively online, whereas Ultra, which targets budget customers who want international calling, is distributed through third-party retailers like Walmart. Also used as arguments in its favor: Mint and Ultra don’t target the same customer segments as T-Mobile’s prepaid brands, and as MVNOs, Mint, and Ultra have limited ability to independently reduce prices or improve quality. Plus, they’re both already using T-Mobile’s network and don’t offer the aforementioned Lifeline or Affordable Connectivity Program benefits.