Clearwire raises $2.8 billion for national WiMAX roll-out

Clearwire has raised a total of $2.8 billion in recent weeks, after an announcement during its third-quarter investors conference call that it had raised an initial $1.5 billion. Most recently, it raised $1.85 billion in a bond offering to pay off debt of $1.4 billion. It also raised an additional $920 million in debt, bringing the company to its $2.8 billion total.

Earlier this month, Clearwire announced plans to raise $1.5 billion in funding, as we reported.

Majority stakeholder Sprint, along with Comcast, Intel, Time Warner, Brighthouse Networks, and others agreed to provide capital, while Google, an original investor in Clear, choose not to be involved in this round of funding. Many analysts see Google's decision as a strike against WiMAX 4G technology.

The company will use the funds to help roll out its network in additional markets to reach 120 million people by the end of 2010.[via mocoNews]