Verizon and Alltel to join in holy matrimony January 9th

Following a good half year of courtship while the regulatory miscellany ran its course, Verizon's finally ready to take the plunge and call this $5.9 billion deal done. The combined juggernaut will amass a staggering 78 million subscribers, putting it roughly 3 million ahead of its closest rival, AT&T, though it'll do so at the cost of assuming some $22.9 billion in Alltel debt. Ultimately, the merger means some positions at Alltel headquarters in Little Rock, Arkansas will get axed -- but hey, AT&T Mobility HQ's just a stone's throw away in Atlanta, so Verizon's headcount loss could ultimately be AT&T's gain.

[Via Phone Scoop]

[jakjak9210 @ Jan 4th 2009 10:56PM]

does anyone know if they are going to keep the brands seperate?

or will we get a super-verizon out of it?

ps first post :)

[Ian Whelan (JOIN BAND!) @ Jan 4th 2009 10:57PM]

More like first post failure.

[jakjak9210 @ Jan 4th 2009 10:57PM]

damn, just missed.

[Peter @ Jan 4th 2009 11:02PM]

You know, if you didn't take the time to add that first post line, you probably would have been...

[BenDy @ Jan 4th 2009 11:48PM]

Yah, First to FAIL!

[Blackstar @ Jan 5th 2009 1:24AM]

Speaking of firsts... I want to see the first TV ads after the "merger." Does this mean we'll see ones with Chad, the Alltel guy, in a gimp suit being the Verizon guy's bitch? "Can ya hear me now? Good!"

[jakjak9210 @ Jan 5th 2009 1:25AM]

@peter

you are probably right. oh well, its all in good fun.

[I LOVE THE CAPS LOCK KEY @ Jan 5th 2009 2:22PM]

Alltel was the creation of the Y2k GTE and Bell Atlantic Mergers. Where GTE was forced to sell off it's cellular division to an investor. It's very ironic that It now becomes part of Verizon. The very same company that was not allowed to own those networks run by Alltel in the first place.

[ChiGecko @ Jan 9th 2009 5:15AM]

Actually, Alltel was around long before 2000. I had an Alltel phone when I was 15... that would have been 1995. My dad had one well before that. The company was greatly expanded in their digital capacities when the GTE/Alltel merger happened, but yes, it is interesting that Alltel got the GTE markets and Verizon got the Primeco markets.... guess it worked out for them in the end. It makes you wonder how they really decide who is a monopoly and who isn't. It's also a shame that Alltel just aquired Western Wireless and a few other smaller companies. If you really look at it, Verizon just bought about 4 companies.

[I LOVE THE CAPS LOCK KEY @ Jan 9th 2009 10:12PM]

I have met several employees of Verizon who worked for GTE. And they all say that things were better when GTE ran the show and that they were very happy. Now they tell me, their new master (Verizon) doen't run the company as well and they cannot wait to finish out their last few years and retire, then put the Verizon misery behind them. This would not be the case if GTE were still around. Sad.

[Luis A @ Jan 4th 2009 10:59PM]

man, those guys in the alltel commercials are all out of Jobs. That Verizon guy is definitely getting a raise. Too bad all he spends his money on is feeding all those people he rolls with everywhere. maybe the guys in the Commercial could roll with him now!!

[Bbar86 @ Jan 4th 2009 11:10PM]

hahahaha

[Tom @ Jan 5th 2009 10:19AM]

What was fascinating to me was that in the last one, the Alltel guy made less fun of the VZW guy, who was hanging at the back of the crowd. Curious, but not surprising.

[zephead @ Jan 5th 2009 3:36AM]

I can imagine the commercial now: The Verizon guy and Chad have a big wedding, and T-Mo, Sprint, and AT&T run in after "speak now, or forever hold your peace."

[John @ Jan 4th 2009 11:00PM]

Doesn't Alltel spend like half their time mocking Verizon in their ads? Weird...

[Bryan @ Jan 4th 2009 11:04PM]

Alltel was playing tough to get.

[banned @ Jan 4th 2009 11:01PM]

if t mobile passes up sprint and alltel

[banned @ Jan 4th 2009 11:03PM]

if t mobile passes up sprint and alltel merges with verizon wont t mobile be #2 largest carrier?



wtf? engadget you cut me off right before a greater sign?

[austin @ Jan 4th 2009 11:17PM]

im not sure how you totally forgot about ATT.

[John @ Jan 4th 2009 11:19PM]

the greater sign (also known as >) is also the beginning of an HTML tag, and because the guy who wrote the comment system was a talentless PHP monkey, it chops it off instead of just escaping it like a sane system.

[Mitch @ Jan 4th 2009 11:50PM]

Now, if T-Mobile did not pass but BOUGHT Sprint, they'd wouldn't just be two, they'd be the top dog.

... But that won't be happening anytime soon (despite it being totally fun)

[Peter @ Jan 4th 2009 11:02PM]

So I guess it's back to the drawing board for Alltel's ad guys... Or does the Verizon guy just decide to leave his cronies and join the dark side? Or Verizon absorbs them and kills off the Alltel name completely...

[dcoaster @ Jan 4th 2009 11:02PM]

Darn, the Alltel guy was cool. =)

[Nik @ Jan 4th 2009 11:08PM]

Ah, Chad. He was by far the coolest. I mean, the name Chad just reeks with awesomeness.

[beast @ Jan 5th 2009 1:00AM]

Ah yes, chad.

He is my friend's brother's wife's cousin.
really.

I've heard that he is a very cool person.
My friend said he rocks at volleyball too.

[dbs @ Jan 5th 2009 12:46PM]

chadbrochill17

[narniafrek @ Jan 4th 2009 11:04PM]

Verizon sucks. I know, I know...this makes them "bigger than AT&T." Except...AT&T is international, as in Europe, South America, China...anyplace except Japan. AT&T has better phones. The list goes on. Honestly, I have always had AT&T and will for as long as they are still around, even they get another new name. (Cellular One, Cingular, AT&T, ????)

[LJKelley @ Jan 4th 2009 11:19PM]

Actually AT&T doesn't operate anywhere but the US. Yes there phones have roaming agreements worldwide, but so does Verizon with select phones as does T-Mobile. In fact T-Mobile is larger overall than AT&T if you consider its global subscribers.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mobile_network_operators

[P3t3 @ Jan 4th 2009 11:24PM]

Half of Verizon Wireless is owned by Vodafone. I guess they are kind of international too.... Vodafone only the largest cell phone provider in the world......

[Sofunnytom @ Jan 4th 2009 11:38PM]

@p3t3

vodafone is actually the second largest, and they only own 45% of VZW

[Mitch @ Jan 4th 2009 11:39PM]

Actually, Vodafone is number 2. Check out the wiki link above. :D

[Electromodo @ Jan 5th 2009 12:11AM]

Funny how brand loyalty is now covering not only PMPs, cellphones, game consoles, computer hardware manufacturer's... but also cell phone providers! Hmmmm...

Personally I switched to Verizon after 5 years with AT&T because AT&T signal was really bad in my new house (though it's in the middle of AT&T's best covered 3G area), and also because I want a signal in metro. I got it all with Verizon (and a 1 year contract too).

So I guess, Verizon may not suck at least for some...

[thepenguin @ Jan 4th 2009 11:05PM]

so what will happen with all the alltel exclusives like the delve and touch pro uncrippled? will they be part of verizons lineup now? hope so!

[Leland Robinson @ Jan 5th 2009 5:31PM]

i hope so, i hope Verizon doesnt "cripple" the phones i hope that the CEO's will get together to come up with the best plans for people of types!

i hope they get rid of that tiresome interface.

[austin @ Jan 4th 2009 11:15PM]

little rock and atlanta are not close actually. at all.

[Frankenstein Black @ Jan 5th 2009 2:05PM]

Exactly! And say what now?
"so Verizon's headcount loss could ultimately be AT&T's gain"
Please, keep those CDMA Luddites far, far away...

[Plothole @ Jan 4th 2009 11:23PM]

According to the Alltel people I talked to, this merger unfortunately means that both Verizon and Alltel will be pulling out of some areas. Including the city that I live in. Supposedly someone is going to come in and scoop up their customer bases. I just hope that whomever it is will either support the current CDMA networks, or at least reimburse those of us with rather expensive phones. (I've already been burned once with AT&T)

[Nerd Ferguson @ Jan 5th 2009 8:23AM]

that doesn't even make sense...

[Jonathan @ Jan 5th 2009 10:14AM]

I was told a couple weeks ago that if the location has only alltel, the store becomes a Verizon wireless store. If both exist, the alltel reps better start looking for a job. I just renewed my Alltel contract so I'll have myCircle for 2 more years. After that, its let Verizon cripple my blackberry time :'(

[Consultor @ Jan 5th 2009 2:07PM]

Some Alltel (and some Verizon) customers must be divested to a trustee (and then eventually to some buyer supposedly) in order to avoid formation of a monopoly in areas where Alltel and VZ are the only current (or completely dominant, as a combination) choice.

You will keep all of your functionality per your contract. What happens after your contract runs out is anyone's guess at this point -- depending on the buyer you may have to get a new phone, etc.

[Plothole @ Jan 6th 2009 8:34PM]

@Consultor

That makes sense. Alltel and Verizon are indeed the only full services out here in Elko County. T-Mobile only does the pre-paid phones.

Fortunately I have about another seven months on the contract.

[GundamWingEW @ Jan 4th 2009 11:23PM]

A match made in HELL!

Thank God for Sprint. I hope Sprint can move upward this year and stop the bleeding. Otherwise I will be really screwed. I love my plan and I love my network. I'd hate to switch to AT&T or even worse Verizon..

[Logboy @ Jan 4th 2009 11:47PM]

Wow. That's totally awesome. Wow for an article about Verizon, the words "AT&T" sure appear a lot. More so than "Verizon" even. What's up with that?

[Mitch @ Jan 4th 2009 11:57PM]

Obviously it is a part of the Engadget team's eloborate scheme to one day relate every news story somehow to Apple as the result of a sick and twisted game of Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon (Steve Jobs edition).

[narniafrek @ Jan 5th 2009 10:48AM]

Verizon - AT&T is another phone company - AT&T sells the iPhone - Yay! we got to Apple!

Seriously though, AT&T has always given me great service. I have never dropped a call, I have always have at least 2 bars, even on cross country road trips from Indiana to CA, right in up PCH to Oregon, and all the way to DC. Unless they do something really radical - like sell out to Verizon - I will stick with AT&T.

[kamakaze @ Jan 5th 2009 12:09AM]

first verizon buys out quest, now alltel.

does does that mean that verizon customers will get better service in places where alltel was operating?
i'm not entirely in the know about the goings-on of the "verizon gods"

[SupaYoYoMan @ Jan 5th 2009 12:35AM]

You think if i walk into an alltel store they'll tell me what exactly all this merger stuff means for my service?

Cause as of right now, verizon has no service in my area..

[Bwin @ Jan 5th 2009 12:45AM]

*starts playing "We Are Family"* gahhh I love that song.

[Cardbored @ Jan 5th 2009 12:48AM]

bomb my buddy's cabin has alltel and will now have verizon :]

[Jash @ Jan 5th 2009 12:49AM]

So is this gonna be a Sprint-Nextel kinda togetherness
or a AT&T-takeover cingular kinda togetherness?