AT&T and T-Mobile Discuss Cutting Boost Mobile Off Their Networks if SpaceX Acquires It
Key Facts
Benzinga reported on November 6 that executives at AT&T and T-Mobile separately discussed removing Boost Mobile from their networks if SpaceX acquired the prepaid carrier. The report places the possibility of losing network access among the potential paths for SpaceX to enter the U.S. wireless market, but does not say any deal has been completed. The discussions also do not establish that either company has decided to end its agreement with Boost. The company relies on leased capacity from both networks rather than operating its own nationwide infrastructure. Existing agreements may require the carriers’ approval before they can be transferred to a new owner.
Benzinga said the discussions are not necessarily limited to a purchase of Boost Mobile; earlier reports raised the possibility that SpaceX could acquire the company or gain access to its network through its parent company, EchoStar. That possibility makes network arrangements an important part of any potential deal, since a change in ownership does not guarantee that network-use rights will transfer automatically. In Benzinga’s account, AT&T and T-Mobile officials separately discussed the possibility of removing Boost from their networks in the event of an acquisition. AT&T, T-Mobile and SpaceX did not immediately respond to Benzinga’s requests for comment. The report does not announce an agreement between SpaceX and EchoStar or any actual change to subscriber service.
Boost and Gen Mobile together have a large wireless subscriber base, but it declined in EchoStar’s latest available data. The company said it had 7.19 million subscribers on September 30, compared with 7.38 million at the end of the second quarter of 2026. EchoStar’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission showed 7.193 million wireless subscribers at the end of September, versus 7.520 million a year earlier, a decline of 4.3%. The company lost about 182,000 net subscribers in the third quarter of 2026, after adding 223,000 in the same period of 2025. Its churn rate rose to 2.97% from 2.86% a year earlier, while average monthly revenue per subscriber increased 5.1% to $39.11.
The discussions are taking place alongside broader spectrum arrangements between EchoStar and SpaceX. An EchoStar regulatory filing in November 2026 valued the amended deal with SpaceX at about $20 billion, with final closing targeted for November 2027. The company said in its filing that the total consideration had increased from $17 billion to about $20 billion, with up to $11 billion to be paid in SpaceX shares. The Federal Communications Commission approved SpaceX’s transactions on May 12, 2026, while the spectrum acquisition remained targeted for completion on November 30, 2027. This spectrum-related process is separate from the possibility of buying Boost or using its network.
SpaceX has another route into the mobile market: building a nationwide terrestrial 5G network. Axios reported that a multiyear agreement with Qualcomm calls for equipment to be deployed at tens of thousands of cellular sites, beginning in 2027. The outlet said achieving reliable nationwide coverage would take longer than starting to install the equipment. According to an analysis Axios cited from David Barden of New Street Research, a wholesale agreement with an existing carrier could be faster, less costly and more profitable for SpaceX than building an independent network. Axios also reported that Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile rejected Elon Musk’s efforts to secure access to their networks. The possibility of an agreement with Boost or EchoStar remains alongside the network-building plan, with neither resolved so far.
Against the backdrop of the competition, Reuters reported on November 5 that Tim Höttges, chief executive of Deutsche Telekom, said investors had already begun pricing in a long-term decline in profitability for established telecom operators as SpaceX prepared to enter the U.S. market. Höttges told reporters: "We have to assume that it is coming." He linked his remarks to the expected entry of SpaceX, despite the time and investment required to build a nationwide network. In a separate transaction, EchoStar completed its spectrum deal with AT&T on July 28, 2026, following approvals on May 12, and received $20.250 billion in cash. This puts EchoStar’s existing relationships with carriers and its available spectrum in the context of the Boost discussions, while details of any potential deal remain unresolved.