Satellite TV giants retire from U.S. wireless sale

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A joint venture of rival satellite television providers DirecTV Group Inc. and EchoStar Communications Corp. bowed out on Wednesday of a multi-billion-dollar auction of U.S. licenses for advanced wireless services.

Analysts said the bidding likely got too high for the companies, which could instead pursue partnerships or even acquisitions to add high-speed wireless Internet service to their line-up to meet growing demands of consumers.

The top two U.S. satellite companies, joined by media conglomerate Liberty Media, had initially showed strong interest in the wireless licenses, paying the largest deposit of all 168 bidders that qualified for the sale, $972.5 million.