The $26 billion merger between T-Mobile and Sprint secured final approval on Friday from the Department of Justice, where regulators blessed the combination of the country’s third- and fourth-largest wireless carriers after they agreed to sell off a critical portion of their business to Dish Network.

The green-light from the government’s antitrust watchdogs removes a significant federal hurdle that had been standing in the way of the two telecom giants, which had flirted for years over a potential tie-up in a bid to rival AT&T and Verizon — only to abandon their plans in the face of sustained Washington skepticism.

To win DOJ’s blessings, T-Mobile and Sprint have agreed to sell wireless spectrum, telecom infrastructure and other assets to Dish, a satellite-television company that long has harbored ambitions to become a national wireless carrier. The move is meant to satisfy regulators’ concerns that a combination of T-Mobile and Sprint would limit consumers’ options for phone service. Absent those divestitures, DOJ officials said Wednesday that they would have sued to stop the deal, citing the fact it would harm competition and consumers.

More at The Washington Post.