Sprint still seeks merger partner after being rejected by Charter

Enlarge (credit: Mike Mozart)

Cable company Charter Communications said it has no interest in buying Sprint. After reports that Sprint owner SoftBank proposed a merger with Charter, the cable company said it will move forward in its plan to offer wireless service without buying the carrier.

"We understand why a deal is attractive for SoftBank, but Charter has no interest in acquiring Sprint," Charter said in a statement provided to Ars and other news outlets. "We have a very good MVNO relationship with Verizon and intend to launch wireless services to cable customers next year."

SoftBank reportedly proposed a merger that would combine Sprint and Charter to create a new entity controlled by SoftBank, rather than a merger in which Charter would buy Sprint. Still, Charter's statement seems to make it clear that it doesn't want to combine its cable network with Sprint's nationwide wireless network. Charter plans to resell Verizon Wireless service inside its cable territory rather than nationwide.