“Move seen as commitment to overhaul struggling carrier.” Sometimes a newspaper’s subheadline tells the whole story. And so it did last Friday when the Wall Street Journal published a piece headlined “Sprint Chairman Masayoshi Son Buys a House Near Sprint’s Headquarters.” Readers immediately understood the real estate deal for what it is: “a sign the Japanese billionaire will be spending more time near the company’s headquarters.”
Son, who also is CEO of SoftBank group Corp., the money behind Sprint, lives in Japan, and when in the United States has been meeting with Sprint executives in an office in San Carlos, CA, the newspaper reported. While he already owns a $120 million home in the Golden State, Son bought the house at the encouragement of Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure, who wanted Son to hold executive meetings in Sprint’s principal offices. The Journal observed: “Son’s decision to settle closer to the carrier’s headquarters is notable because it shows his increased commitment to overhauling the struggling carrier.”
It’s unclear how much Son paid for his Mission Hills address, an upscale community just outside Kansas City, MO, but Zillow puts the most recent house sales at a broad range of $500,000 to $3 million.
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