Sprint is talking to cable companies about a possible investment that may lead to an acquisition of partner Clearwire,  Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter.  Sprint may be in talks with cable providers like Comcast Corp. and Cablevision, among others.  Bloomberg reports that under one scenario, Sprint would use the money to buy equity in Clearwire is doesn’t already own.

Sprint’s discussion with the cable companies are still in preliminary stages and several different scenarios are under consideration. No deals have been struck. It is possible that if Sprint acquires Clearwire it can more effectively compete with larger rivals AT&T and Verizon Wireless.

Sprint is one of a handful of companies that have invested in Clearwire, and owns 54% of the company.  Clearwire and Sprint recently announced plans to build a Long Term Evolution-based 4G mobile broadband network along the WiMax network the companies are also rolling out.

A deal with Sprint may help cable companies compete more effectively against telephone rivals in offering high-speed wireless service.  AT&T and Verizon Communications Inc. can offer a so-called quadruple play of landline, wireless, Internet and pay-television service to customers in some regions.

Cable-company backing would also bolster Sprint as it struggles to compete against its larger rivals. The company, which in July reported its 15th consecutive quarterly loss, will lose ground to AT&T if that company completes its proposed acquisition of T-Mobile USA. The deal would allow AT&T to surpass Verizon Wireless as the country’s largest wireless operator.

Sprint, based in Overland Park, Kansas, fell 23 cents, or 6.2 percent, to $3.49 at 4 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange trading, and has dropped 17 percent overall this year. Clearwire’s shares fell 2 cents to $2.31 on the NASDAQ Stock Market.  Its stock has dropped 55 percent this year.