There had always been speculation of what a great fit Leap Wireless would be with MetroPCS. Instead, MetroPCS decided to pair with T-Mobile in a reverse merger that would make the magenta carrier publicly traded in the U.S. for the first time. That was after AT&T failed to acquire T-Mobile, when the Department of Justice vetoed the deal years ago. Meanwhile, SoftBank has enmeshed itself with Sprint and Clearwire, despite DISH Network 's efforts to cut in on the action.