Verizon Wireless to buy Rural Cellular for $2.67 billion
By Darren Murph 
posted Jul 30th 2007 12:50PM
posted Jul 30th 2007 12:50PM
Another one bites the dust, so to speak. This time around, we've got Verizon Wireless doing the acquiring, as it has just announced plans to pay $2.67 billion for "one of the nation's largest rural carriers," Rural Cellular. The news comes just over a month after AT&T handed over a staggering amount of its own to pick up Dobson Communications, and this agreement will expand the carrier's coverage "in parts of the East Coast and the South, as well as in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Kansas, Idaho, Washington and Oregon." Verizon did note that it planned on deploying CDMA service in Rural Cellular's existing GSM markets in order to convert customers over, but it also mentioned that the existing GSM networks would remain to "serve the roaming needs of other GSM carrier's customers." Look for the deal to be finalized sometime during the first half of next year, and don't be surprised if we see a few more consolidation efforts go down in the meantime.
My company just got bought by Alltel and I just had an interview with Unicel this morning. They were the last home carrier in Minnesota...
Verizon just made 6 people very happy, kudos
Disappointing. First thing they'll do is sack people in the regional centers.
It's ironic knowing that Verizon is trying to leave land-line service in the largest Unicel Market (ME NH VT). I hope the government bodies tell them no.
I also figure the Unicel customers won't be happy noticing their 50$ unlimited plan and Free incoming plans are history.
Am I the only one who glanced at the map and thought that "Hey, Idaho is backwards!"
Damn. What do these people have against iDaho? -Ooohh, i get it. HaHa, nice work Engadget!
Haha, Rural Cellular. Just a step above tin cans and taunt string. Oh wait, the cans have better reception.
Chuckles -
You've obviously never used GSM in the Northeast. Their network is nothing short of impressive here, expanding every day.
There's a reason why they did 160 million in roaming rev last year.
So then you get Verizon who replaces a shiny tin can with a rusty and cripples the features of said can. And then, when the can breaks, you can't just buy a cheap soup can from the grocery store, empty it and use that, you have to buy a special can from Verizon that costs a hell of a lot more and requires a new 2 year contract.
Hum! Wonder what Rural's POPs is? Anyways, to the existing Subs, RUN as fast as you can away from CDMA. You are GSM "SIM Spoiled" (i.e. pop a SIM out which has address book, SMS data, etc. and pop it in a new or other phone, easy - you have that now). Going back to ESNs is, well, a Joke! Not to mention device choices that have the ability to Roam globally (Verizon has what 3? AT&T or T-Mobile - Almost ALL?)...
Run from CDMA? Problem with that is, in Vermont and Northern New York, Unicel is the ONLY GSM option. There's no T-Mobile or AT&T.
Verizon Wireless buying out RCC means having to pick between Verizon and Sprint Nextel... and that's it. I normally don't have high hopes in the FCC doing the right thing, but I would think someone will notice that up here, we'd be in a duopoly situation with NO home GSM carrier...
VT NH and ME have the option of US Cellular for their rural coverage. Northeastern NY doesn't have that option unfortunately.
So basically you're going to have Verizon on CDMA (sometimes roaming on US Cellular in rural areas, same as now), and US Cellular on CDMA (sometimes roaming on Verizon on CDMA).
I'm hoping the FTC/FCC and the local PUCs will be against this, because it would mean you'd have 2 850mhz carriers on CDMA.
Droo: US Cellular doesn't really count, as they only cover southern VT -- you're roaming on Verizon north of White River Jct. -- not an option for 80%+ of Vermonters. This move, in effect, leaves the state's main population center (Burlington) with Verizon and Sprint/Nextel.
A duopoly, and no GSM home carrier... just a month after Burlington TV and newspapers bemoaned how they couldn't get in on the iPhone craze, to boot. Be it the FCC or the PUC, someone's gonna yowl...
US Cellular served St Johnsbury though on 1900 and they have expanded further across from the Berlin market. I was a US Cellular customer until 2005 and had US Cellular natively in several places in Central VT. Roaming on Verizon is allowed on regional and national plans anyway, but Verizon roams on US Cellular anyway and they don't have a 50/50 about it. I don't consider White River Junction "southern VT", I consider it central or central northern VT.
The iPhone issue is certainly an interesting one and also contributes to the problem indirectly. I think the real issue here is the choice will be CDMA or CDMA. One way or another you'll be a US Cellular, Verizon or Sprint customer, which is a great thing for Qualcomm but a horrible thing to freedom of choice. No-one's going to bother covering these towns of 250 people in Northern VT (Like Newport for instance?) on 1900.
On additional major issue with ending up with all CDMA carriers in Vermont (as I mentioned http://makkintosshu.dyndns.org/journal/say-goodbye-to-the-iphone-in-vermont) is that since there will no longer be a GSM carrier, you won't be able to get SIMs to use here even if you get an unlocked iPhone or Treo 680. And no, those pre-paid SIMs don't count 'cause you can't roam with them.
It's interesting that Verizon Wireless actually plans to keep the GSM network around to make money off roaming, because otherwise the merger would definitely get shot down for anti-trust.
Oh well this sucks. Rural Celllular aka Unicel here is GSM. They just weeded out CDMA. and now Verizon is bringing back. I'd like to shoot some Verizon people.
This SUCKS. I live in Vermont, and Unicel is great around here. I hate Verizon and their shitty, locked-down phones.
I hear ya. The fact that the 50$ unlimited plan and Free Incoming will be going away too.
I wonder if Rural Cellular had some decimal problems and charged verizon 26.7 billion instead.
The story on CNET says Verizon is only spending $757 million for Rural.
http://news.com.com/8301-10784_3-9751805-7.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-5
Perhaps I just missed something though.
The rest is debt..
Okay that makes sense.
This is real terrible news for me. Been using Unicel for several years now and they have been great. I only pay $35 a month for 800 minutes w/ unlimited long distance plus an extra $5 for free incoming. Where I live Verizon isn't even an option. Plus Verizon is trying to sell off there land line service in our area as well. Sad day for those of us who knew of this deal.
Depending on your contract you signed, you might get to keep your plan, unless you plan on changing it. My dad still has a 100 minutes a month for $5 from 10 years ago, and he used to have Worldcom. I had att, and I went to cingular to att again, and they can't change my plan unless i change anything about it.
It is interesting to note that the heads of Verizon Wireless and Rural Cell are both directors at CTIA, which most likely explains how these companies got together. NewsVisual has an article up that goes into some more detail about this connection: http://www.newsvisual.com/newsvisual/2007/07/verizonrural-ce.html
Who's gonna buy Alltel?
Good question, don't really know. They have like 12 million customers. There was a rumor that Verizon was going to take them but I guess it never materialized. Alltel and US Cellular could theoretically merge. They do share some coverage but Alltel's closest place to the Northeast is Connecticut.
Alltel's My Circle would definitely make things competitive in the Northeast where most of Unicel's customers are.
Odd; I live in Western Kansas, and I've never heard of Rural Cellular (I have Alltel). Anyway, it'll all be better when Ma Bell and Lily Tomlin are back in charge and even our cellies are mounted atop phone poles Green Acres-style.
i got my Verizon plan from http://www.bestcellularphoneserviceplans.com.