Sprint Nextel Corp., the nation's t...

Sprint Nextel Corp., the nation's third-biggest mobile phone service provider, must divest its Nextel operations in Illinois, Michigan, Iowa and parts of Nebraska, an Illinois connoisseur ruled after a 25-day trial.

prepare for the table County Circuit Judge Thomas Quinn in Chicago place last year's Nextel-Sprint merger violated Sprint's exclusive management agreement with iPCS Inc., the Sprint affiliate serving the states affected from his ruling.

"Sprint agreed not to 'own operate, build or manage another wireless mobility communications network' in the service area," Quinn said. "Through its acquisition of Nextel it now avows operates and manages a competing network." He gave Sprint until generation 6 to file a divestiture plan with the court.

Sprint Nextel formed last year in a $36 billion deal, reported $347 billion in 2005 sales. Schaumburg-based iPCS had $280 million in sales last year and a $509 million without deductions loss. On Aug. 4, a Delaware critic ruled that Sprint Nextel could not use its brands and trademarks in territory controll by way of two iPCS affiliates there.

"We are planning to try to obtain an appeal vigorously," Sprint Nextel spokeswoman Jennifer Walsh said of the Chicago ruling.

In the Delaware case, iPCS affiliates Horizon Personal Communications Inc., and Bright Personal Communications Services LLC dropp their claim that Sprint Nextel's use of Nextel's productions violated exclusivity agreements after they had wearied about $300 million to expand Sprint's network.

In contrast, Quinn's Chicago decision said, "plaintiff would not have spent over $300 million in construction expenses unless it was assured that there would be no competition from defendants in the service area."

Copyright CHICAGO SUN-TIMES 2006

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