Jul 29, 2017

Report: Sprint seeking merger with Charter

Jeff Chiu / AP

The Wall Street Journal reported Friday night that Sprint is seeking to merge with Charter Communications. That deal would marry one of the the nation's four main wireless carriers with a dominant cable provider under the auspices of SoftBank, Sprint's Japanese parent company.

  • Caution: Bloomberg has a source who says Charter isn't on board with the idea. Both companies declined to comment on either story.
  • Take note: Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure was in Japan this week, per his Twitter feed.
  • Bigger picture: It's been a furious season of speculation about possible telecom deals. Sprint could benefit from a deal with Charter or another company to help it compete with Verizon and AT&T, and companies that offer wired service can diversify by getting into the wireless space or investing in content. An agreement between Charter and Comcast means the former couldn't merge with Sprint without the blessing of the latter.

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Axios
Updated 59 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios

  1. Politics: Trump calls Fauci a "disaster" on campaign call.
  2. Health: Coronavirus hospitalizations are on the rise — 8 states set single-day coronavirus case records last week.
  3. States: California to independently review FDA-approved coronavirus vaccines
  4. Wisconsin judge reimposes capacity limit on indoor venues.
  5. Media: Trump attacks CNN as "dumb b*stards" for continuing to cover pandemic.
  6. Business: Consumer confidence surveys show Americans are getting nervous — How China's economy bounced back from coronavirus.
  7. Sports: We've entered the era of limited fan attendance.
  8. Education: Why education technology can’t save remote learning.
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Dion Rabouin, author of Markets
1 hour ago - Economy & Business

The 2020 holiday season may just kill Main Street

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

Online retail and e-commerce have been chipping away at brick-and-mortar businesses over the years but the combination of the coronavirus pandemic and the 2020 holiday season may prove to be a knockout blow.

State of play: Anxious consumers say financial concerns and health worries will push them to spend less money this year and to do more of their limited spending online.

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Rebecca Falconer
3 hours ago - Health

California to independently review FDA-approved coronavirus vaccines

California Gov. Gavin Newsom. Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

California will "independently review" all coronavirus vaccines approved by the Food and Drug Administration before allowing their distribution, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) announced at a news conference Monday.

Why it matters: The move that comes days after NAID director Anthony Fauci said he had "strong confidence" in FDA-approved vaccines could cast further public doubt that the federal government could release a vaccine based on political motives, rather than safety and efficacy.

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