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Dixons Carphone Ends US Sprint Joint Venture

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Dixons Carphone announces an end to its US joint venture with mobile network Sprint after less than 2 years, the result of a "changing US mobile market landscape."

Dixons CarphoneAs a result, Sprint will acquire the Dixon Carphone share of the distribution joint venture. The team up had Dixons Carphone manage a number of Sprint-branded stores in US while providing consultancy services. Instead, the UK retailer plans to concentrate on the rollout of its Honeybee sales software, which is used under white label by the likes of Apple, across the entire Sprint operation.

“We have enjoyed working with Sprint to accelerate their store opening programme over the last 2 years and have developed an estate and a pipeline to help support their ambitious growth plans," Dixons Carphone CEO Andrew Harrison says. "With the significant shift in the US mobile market, now is the right time to transfer these stores to Sprint, and to concentrate on our exciting software business, Honeybee."

This is the 2nd time in 6 years Dixons Carphone abandoned a US joint venture-- in 2011 Carphone Warehouse (before its merger with Dixons) sold its stake in US retailer Best Buy for over $1 billion. The agreement had Carphone Warehouse offer Best Buy customers advice and sales in-store and in some standalone outlets, and according to the Financial Times the exit came after a period of "strong" growth.

Back in 1987 Dixons also tried a stab at US retail through the acquisition of the Silo and Tipton electrical chains. However, after rapid expansion, Solo built up "huge losses," leading to a sale in 1993.

Go Sprint JV Stores and Honeybee Deployment