The court on Wednesday refused to hear Sprint's appeal of a March ruling by the Appellate Court of Illinois that would require Overland Park, Kan.-based Sprint to dismantle its Nextel network in regions of the Midwest.

Schaumburg, Ill.-based iPCS sells Sprint-branded services. It sued Sprint after Sprint acquired Nextel Communications Inc. in 2005, saying that it was violating iPCS' exclusivity agreement by selling Nextel products in its territory.

A Cook County judge sided with iPCS in 2006, ordering Sprint to divest itself of its Nextel holdings in the affiliate's territory.