South Korea’s SK Telecom is reportedly in talks to acquire a stake in US third-placed mobile operator Sprint Nextel. Neither company has confirmed the speculation – which was first aired by US business news channel CNBC yesterday – but various sources close to the situation have suggested that SK Telecom is looking at acquiring a stake in the business in tandem with private equity partners, with Providence Equity Partners possibly involved. The Financial Times suggests that a full takeover is unlikely for regulatory reasons with a minority stake more feasible. A later report in the Wall Street Journal suggested the two companies are looking at a strategic partnership to develop new handsets and services rather than a merger.

Sprint reportedly rejected a US$5 billion investment bid tabled by SK Telecom last year and has also been linked to a takeover bid by Deutsche Telekom, owner of rival operator T-Mobile USA. Sprint Nextel’s share price has dropped significantly this year amid reports that it is losing customers to larger rivals Verizon Wireless and AT&T. Sprint’s share price rose yesterday in response to the merger speculation, though SK Telecom’s dropped. The South Korean firm announced last month that it had sold its loss-making US MVNO Helio to Virgin Mobile USA in a deal worth US$39 million. Both Helio and Virgin Mobile run over Sprint’s CDMA network.