KIRKLAND, Wash., Dec 02, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) —
Clearwire Corporation (NASDAQ:CLWR, news, filings), a leading provider of wireless broadband services and operator of the first 4G network in the country, today announced that Sprint has nominated William R. Blessing, Mufit Cinali and Hossein Eslambolchi for election to the Clearwire Corporation board of directors. Their election is expected to occur at the next meeting of the board on December 10, 2010.
“We are pleased to have such a talented and seasoned group of senior executives nominated to join our board of directors as we continue to expand our 4G subscriber base and deliver value to both our customers and shareholders,” said Bill Morrow, Clearwire CEO.
Mr. Blessing is currently a consultant to Burns & McDonnell where he advises clients on smart grid and telecommunications strategy. Prior to this, he served as Senior Vice President, Corporate Strategy and Development for Embarq Corporation, an integrated communications services provider. He also held various executive positions with Sprint from 1990 to 2005.
Mr. Cinali is currently a Managing Director with Springwell Capital Partners, LLC. He has also held strategy, development and M&A positions with Hughes Electronics Corporation, AT&T, GE Capital Corporation, and Bain and Company.
Dr. Eslambolchi holds extensive experience in the telecommunications industry and is currently a technical advisor to Ericsson Corporation and the University of California School of Engineering. He has held several senior positions with AT&T including global Chief Technology Officer, global Chief Information Officer, Chief President and Chief Executive Officer of AT&T Labs and AT&T Global Network Services.
The nominees, if elected, would fill Clearwire’s three current open seats on its board of directors.
About Clearwire
Clearwire Corporation (NASDAQ: CLWR), through its operating subsidiaries, is a leading provider of wireless broadband services. Clearwire’s 4G network currently provides coverage in areas of the U.S. where approximately 103 million people live, and the company plans to continue to expand its 4G coverage. Clearwire’s open all-IP network, combined with significant spectrum holdings, provides an unprecedented combination of speed and mobility to deliver next generation broadband access. The company markets its 4G service through its own brand called CLEAR(R) as well as through its wholesale relationships with Sprint, Comcast and Time Warner Cable. Strategic investors include Intel Capital, Comcast, Sprint, Google, Time Warner Cable, and Bright House Networks. Clearwire is headquartered in Kirkland, Wash. Additional information is available at www.clearwire.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release, and other written and oral statements made by Clearwire from time to time, contains forward-looking statements which are based on management’s current expectations and beliefs, as well as on a number of assumptions concerning future events made with information that is currently available. Forward-looking statements may include, without limitation, management’s expectations regarding future financial and operating performance and financial condition; proposed transactions; network development and market launch plans; strategic plans and objectives; industry conditions; the strength of the balance sheet; and liquidity and financing needs. The words “will,” “would,” “may,” “should,” “estimate,” “project,” “forecast,” “intend,” “expect,” “believe,” “target,” “designed,” “plan” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on such forward-looking statements, which are not a guarantee of performance and are subject to a number of uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside of Clearwire’s control, which could cause actual results to differ materially and adversely from such statements. Some factors that could cause actual results to differ are:
- We are an early-stage company with a history of operating losses and we expect to continue to realize significant net losses for the foreseeable future.
- Our current and future plans are subject to a number of conditions and uncertainties, including among others, our ability to manage ongoing market development activities, our performance in launched markets and our access to additional funding.
- We regularly evaluate our plans, and we may elect to pursue new or alternative strategies which we believe would be beneficial to our business, including among other things, modifying the pace at which we build our 4G mobile broadband networks, augmenting our network coverage in markets we launch, changing our sales and marketing strategy and or acquiring additional spectrum. Such modifications to our plans could significantly change our capital requirements.
- We believe that we require substantial additional financing to maintain our current business plans, and if we are unable to raise such financing on acceptable terms we will need to modify our plans accordingly.
- We may fail to realize all of the anticipated benefits of the transactions with Sprint and the strategic investors.
- We have deployed a wireless broadband network based on mobile WiMAX technology, and would incur significant costs to deploy alternative technologies. Additionally, such alternative technologies may not perform as we expect on our network and deploying such technologies would result in additional risks to the company.
- We currently depend on our commercial partners to develop and deliver the equipment for our legacy and mobile WiMAX networks.
- Many of our competitors are better established and have significantly greater resources, and may subsidize their competitive offerings with other products and services.
- Our substantial indebtedness and restrictive debt covenants could limit our financing options and liquidity position and may limit our ability to grow our business.
- Sprint Nextel Corporation owns a majority of our shares, resulting in Sprint holding a majority voting interest in the Company, and Sprint may have, or may develop in the future, interests that may diverge from other stockholders.
- Future sales of large blocks of our common stock may adversely impact our stock price.
For a more detailed description of the factors that could cause such a difference, please refer to Clearwire’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the information under the heading “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on February 24, 2010 and our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed on November 4, 2010. Clearwire assumes no obligation to update or supplement such forward-looking statements.
SOURCE: Clearwire Corporation
Clearwire Corporation Investor Relations: Paul Blalock, 425-636-5828 paul.blalock@clearwire.com or Media Relations: Susan Johnston, 425-216-7913 susan.johnston@clearwire.com or JLM Partners for Clearwire Mike DiGioia or Jeremy Pemble, 206-381-3600 mike@jlmpartners.com or jeremy@jlmpartners.com
PR Archives: Latest, By Company, By Date