There's been an awful lot of hubbub surrounding AT&T's proposed acquisition of T-Mobile over the past week or so, most of which stems from AT&T and Deutsche Telekom's (T-Mobile's parent company) decision to yank their application for approval of the deal from the FCC. That action has brought about a lot of speculation as to what AT&T and DT might have planned for the deal going forward, including a possible asset sale. According to a report today from the Wall Street Journal, the two companies may be cooking up another option. The site's "people familiar with the matter" claim that AT&T and DT have discussed forming a joint venture to pool their network resources if the acquisition falls through. Details on the plan are still light, as the WSJ says that the talks are still early.

AT&T and Deutsche Telekom would only end up going through with a joint venture if their acquisition plans fail (still a real possibility), the fact that the two firms may be planning such a move shows how determined they are to hook up. It'd definitely be interesting to see AT&T and DT form a joint venture just to find out how such a deal would work, but first they must still fight for AT&T's acquisition of T-Mobile, which includes going up against the Department of Justice and its anti-trust claims. As usual, we'll bring you more details on this whole situation as we get them!

Via Phone Scoop, Wall Street Journal