AT&T (News - Alert) is reaching out to fellow carriers to see if it can offload some of its spectrum and subscribers in an effort to salvage its proposed $39 billion acquisition of T-Mobile (News - Alert), which is being challenged in court by the U.S. government, sources close to the situation told Bloomberg.

The Dallas-based company has reportedly had initial conversations with MetroPCS, Leap Wireless (News - Alert), CenturyLink, Dish Network and Sprint, all of whom could use spectrum assets to build out their own next-generation networks. Reaching out to Sprint is especially bold considering the Kansas-based carrier recently filed an antitrust lawsuit to try and stop the T-Mobile deal, which it said will compromise its ability to compete in the wireless market.

Sources told Bloomberg (News - Alert) that the talks are preliminary and that even if a deal is made, the Department of Justice could still look to nix the acquisition.

The proposed deal, announced in March, would merge the nation's second- and fourth-largest wireless carriers, meaning that AT&T and Verizon (News - Alert) would account for nearly 80 percent of the market. Lawmakers, consumer interest groups and competitors like Sprint spent the better part of the summer urging Federal regulators to stop the deal, and it looks like their efforts may be successful.

The Justice Department filed suit to block the deal on Aug. 31, two days after the FCC “restarted the shot clock” on its own inquiry into the acquisition.

AT&T and the Justice Department will meet in court on Wednesday to discuss the suit and to see if a settlement can be reached. The carrier has suggested that it is willing to fight the lawsuit, which seems to be gaining more supporters each day.

Just last week, attorneys general in seven states – including New York, California, Massachusetts, Washington, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Illinois – joined the amended complaint against AT&T. The move is noteworthy because AT&T would now need to win approval from each state on any settlement negotiated with the DOJ.

Stay tuned with TMC for more to come.

Beecher Tuttle is a TMCnet contributor. He has extensive experience writing and editing for print publications and online news websites. He has specialized in a variety of industries, including health care technology, politics and education. To read more of his articles, please visit his columnist page.

Edited by Jennifer Russell