DISH NETWORK MAY BE T-MOBILE'S BACK UP DATE IF AT&T STIFFS IT

Dish Network had reportedly been considered a potential candidate to receive divested T-Mobile assets from AT&T if it couldn't secure initial approval of its acquisition from the government. Dish, however, has publicly opposed the acquisition -- and now it's clear that there were some ulterior motives in wanting to see the merger fall through, because Bloomberg reported this morning that the satellite provider wants to merge its spectrum assets with T-Mobile if things don't go so rosy in the acquisition.

According to CEO Joseph Clayton "We want to... create a national wireless network, video, voice and data. We've got expertise in satellite TV, and we will in satellite broadband. The voice part, we'll need some help with.We want to... create a national wireless network, video, voice and data. We've got expertise in satellite TV, and we will in satellite broadband. The voice part, we'll need some help with."

A partnership with T-Mobile would ideally help both companies: it would help Dish get one step closer to its goal of a wireless network that bundles smartphones, tablets and satellite under the same umbrella, and would cast a bright light on T-Mobile's questionable future.