AT&T's T-Mobile Bid Price Could Fall If Regulators' Remedies Too Expensive

Bangalore (Reuters) - AT&T Inc can lower the price it pays for T-Mobile USA Inc if the remedies requested by regulators become too expensive, a Bloomberg report said, citing three people with direct knowledge of the merger contract.

AT&T would be able to pay less than the deal's original $39 billion value if regulators demand asset sales that surpass 20 percent of that figure, or about $7.8 billion, the report cited unnamed people as saying.

AT&T could walk away from the deal and pay the breakup fee if the concessions requested top 40 percent of that value, the report said.

On August 31, the U.S. government sued to block AT&T's purchase of T-mobile citing concerns it would harm competition in the wireless prices and lead to higher prices.

Dallas-based AT&T agreed to compensate T-Mobile parent Deutsche Telekom AG (DTE) with $3 billion in cash, wireless spectrum and roaming agreements if the deal isn't completed.

AT&T and Deutsche Telekom could not be immediately reached for a comment on the Bloomberg report.

(Reporting by Shravya Jain in Bangalore, editing by Bernard Orr)

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