(By Mani) Clearwire Corp. (NASDAQ: CLWR) said it continues to review the offer from Dish Network Corp. (NASDAQ: DISH), yet it is still recommending the current deal with Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S).
The statement from Clearwire suggests that it would be tough for Dish to win over the Clearwire board over its $3.30 per share proposal. Meanwhile, Clearwire said Dish's unsolicited offer is only a "preliminary indication of interest", and that its board will "engage DISH to discuss and evaluate the proposal."
"We continue to believe that the DISH proposal is illusory and conditioned on many things, including the receipt of governance rights, a spectrum sale and a commercial agreement which are not actionable under our merger agreement and other agreements between Clearwire and Sprint," Sprint said in a statement.
After a rigorous and extensive two-year process, Clearwire pursued numerous strategic opportunities, including discussing the sale of spectrum with no fewer than 10 parties and a series of ongoing conversations with Dish that date back to 2010.
Sprint, which already has a 50.8 stake in Clearwire, agreed in mid-December to buy the remaining 49.2 percent stake in Clearwire for $2.97 per share or a total of $2.2 billion.
Sprint said Clearwire's proxy makes very clear that Sprint's definitive agreement to acquire Clearwire provides both the best value for shareholders and stability amid an uncertain future.