Founded in by brothers Tom and David Gardner, The Motley Fool helps millions of people attain financial freedom through our website, podcasts, books, newspaper column, radio show, and premium investing services. T shares started on a full head of steam. At the end of , Sprint had The company also served 7. Since then, Sprint's prepaid figures have moved just 0.

At best, this is a turnaround story in the making.

Rumor has it that rivals are planning to buy Sprint, adding another profitable option to the tree of potential outcomes. At worst, Sprint's branded services could stay stuck in the mud for years while competing networks continue to grow. Sprint's wholesale success is not able to make up for weakness in the more profitable prepaid and postpaid retail segments. Note that I don't see a future where Sprint goes entirely out of business.

Majority owner Softbank , led by eccentric billionaire Masayoshi Son, also serves as chairman of Sprint and has high hopes for his American telecom investment. Son is not likely to let Sprint fail entirely, at least as long as his own deep pockets can keep Sprint in business.

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So Sprint is a potentially exciting turnaround-slash-buyout story with a safety net. You can invest here without burning your membership card in the low-risk investing club. As one of the two true giants in the American telecom industry, it takes a lot to move the needle for this massive company or its stock prices. This stock is far more predictable than the mercurial Sprint stub -- for better or worse.

That's the Warner-branded media powerhouse, not the cable service by the same name. Investing in Ma Bell today means betting on its future as a media studio embedded in a rich broadcasting and communications infrastructure. President-elect Donald Trump's FCC advisors want to declaw the FCC in a big way , removing nearly all of the commission's regulatory powers.

With a game-changing deal on the table, Ma Bell would really prefer if the president-elect would forget about some of his stated goals. In the yellow corner, Sprint is bouncing back from a deep, dark hole. The turnaround could continue, or the company might attract a buyer of its own, giving Sprint investors two comfortable roads ahead. But the stock easily swings both high and low, and Sprint's place among the big four nationwide wireless services is far from guaranteed even with Masayoshi Son by its side.

Both stocks are risky today, in very different ways. If you absolutely must buy a telecom stock right now, you'd probably be better off looking in other corners of this industry.

And if you absolutely must choose one of the two tickers we discussed here, you'll end up weighing the Softbank safety net against Donald Trump's regulatory whims. Anders Bylund has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Time Warner.

Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Anders Bylund is a Foolish Technology and Entertainment Specialist. Where the two markets intersect, you'll find his wheelhouse. He has been an official Fool since but a jester all his life. Contains six flavors not found in nature.

Believes in coyotes and time as an abstract.

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