T-Mobile explores spectrum possibilities of private sale

T-Mobile is exploring the possibilities of using proceeds from a share offering to fund the purchase of spectrum from a private party.

As reported by Reuters, the carrier said in a regulatory filing that some of the proceeds from an upcoming 72 million share offering -- worth roughly $2 billion -- would be used to finance the potential deal.

Announced on Monday, the sale of T-Mobile stock will be managed by Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs Group Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Credit Suisse Group AG and Deutsche Bank AG.

The carrier, which is majority owned by Deutsche Telekom AG, said within the filing that proceeds would be used to purchase spectrum either from private parties or through government auctions. The private party already being considered is unnamed, but a potential deal would help the carrier cope with rising demand from consumers who use their mobile devices to access the Internet.

However, the fourth-largest mobile operator in the U.S. also said that it had no plans to participate in the upcoming U.S. government-run spectrum auction in January next year.

While T-Mobile joins the ranks of carriers including Vodafone and EE that are struggling to find enough spectrum to appease the appetites of their subscribers, in November, the firm said it signed up over one million net new customers during its fiscal third quarter -- ending the three-month period will a total of 45 million customers.