alltel
Latest
Alltel adds the Motorola VE20
Alltel isn't typically the first US carrier to release much of anything, with the notable exception of Glimmer. That's alright -- coming it at number five, they probably don't have quite the sway with manufacturers that a Verizon or a Sprint does, for example -- and that'll all change soon enough anyway once the Verizon acquisition goes through. In the meantime, though, Alltel's following Sprint in its release of Motorola's VE20, a midrange flip with an outer touchscreen, 2-megapixel cam, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. It'll be available starting this Thursday for $99.99 with contract and rebate in navy and licorice, but if you're dying to get a head start, you can go ahead and preorder now.
Alltel getting Touch Pro?
If history is destined to repeat itself, it stands to reason that Alltel would be getting ready to follow Sprint down HTC's golden road yet again, does it not? This time around, of course, the devices in question would be the Touch Diamond and Touch Pro -- and we just so happen to have been presented with a shot of what appears to be an Alltel-branded Touch Pro doing its thing on a tastefully contemporary laminate surface somewhere. Word is that it'll launch "soon" after the Diamond does, making Verizon look all that much sillier that we haven't heard an official peep out of 'em. Can't be shown up by your new acquisition, can you, guys?[Thanks, Brandon A.]Update: More pictures have popped up, so this thing's definitely looking legit. 'Grats, Alltel subscribers -- it's like winning the lottery! Thanks, Mills!
Verizon says heads will roll at Alltel
When (and if) Verizon closes its deal to snap up Alltel, the carrier's Little Rock campus will suddenly lose its status as a corporate headquarters. Instead, it'll see duty as a regional outpost of the Big Red behemoth, according to Verizon Wireless CEO Lowell McAdam -- and regional outposts don't exactly need the 3,000 employees currently employed there. Though it's not clear exactly how many jobs will be trimmed, rumor has it executives and mid-level managers will be the first to get the boot; the silver lining in the news is that McAdam says Verizon's going to try to find jobs for some of the affected folks elsewhere within the corporate footprint if they're not needed in Little Rock. Atlanta, perhaps?
Alltel sees huge data growth, too
Alltel announced its second quarter earnings this week, and first, the bad news: despite a 10 percent improvement in revenue year over year, the number five carrier actually lost $69.9 million, thanks largely to increases in interest costs on its debt and write offs associated with the absorption of an affiliate last year. Now, onto the good news: like most of its competitors, Alltel saw huge gains in data revenue over the same period -- some 45 percent, to be exact, or $8.18 out of the $54.42 ARPU they're currently posting. They've also added close to 320,000 net subscribers in the quarter, so all things considered, we've got to believe Verizon's still happy with its investment -- assuming it ends up going through, of course.
Verizon tops T-Mobile in J.D. Power customer care survey, again
T-Mobile may have once been able to bank on J.D. Power's customer care survey to bolster its bag of bragging rights, but it looks like that's no longer the case, as Verizon has now finally edged it out, following a similar shift in J.D. Power's retail sales satisfaction survey last year. Not only that, T-Mobile actually fell to third place, behind Verizon's merger-mate Alltel. There isn't much of a spread between the top-ranked companies, however, with Verizon snagging a score of 103, Alltel scoring 102, and T-Mobile garnering a respectable 100. Only Sprint Nextel, which got a lowly 79, scored below the industry average. Among the other tidbits to be found in the survey, which included more than 11,000 respondents, is the fact that customers spent an average of 4.4 minutes on hold with customer service, a jump of 34% from the previous survey, while 49% of all wireless customers said they called in for help at least once, a minor uptick from the 47% reported last time around. That, J.D. Power says, is at least partly due to the "increasingly complex" wireless phones and services available nowadays.
Verizon tops T-Mobile in J.D. Power customer care survey
T-Mobile may have once been able to bank on J.D. Power's customer care survey to bolster its bag of bragging rights, but it looks like that's no longer the case, as Verizon has now finally edged it out, following a similar shift in J.D. Power's retail sales satisfaction survey last year. Not only that, T-Mobile actually fell to third place, behind Verizon's merger-mate Alltel. There isn't much of a spread between the top-ranked companies, however, with Verizon snagging a score of 103, Alltel scoring 102, and T-Mobile garnering a respectable 100. Only Sprint Nextel, which got a lowly 79, scored below the industry average. Among the other tidbits to be found in the survey, which included more than 11,000 respondents, is the fact that customers spent an average of 4.4 minutes on hold with customer service, a jump of 34% from the previous survey, while 49% of all wireless customers said they called in for help at least once, a minor uptick from the 47% reported last time around. That, J.D. Power says, is at least partly due to the "increasingly complex" wireless phones and services available nowadays.
Palm looses 700p / 700wx ROM updates for Verizon / Alltel
Funny story -- these guys will be one in the same here in just a few months, but until then, you'll have to pretend there's absolutely no relationship between Palm's 700p (Verizon) and 700wx (Alltel). Jibber-jabber aside, those still rockin' either Treo may be interested in sucking down what's apt to be the final ROM update for both handsets on these carriers. As predicted, Palm didn't go into great detail about what all the respective Radio Patches were, um, patching up, but you know you can't walk around without the latest and greatest on your phone. That being said, tap the links below (choose carefully!) to get your download on.[Via PalmInfocenter]Read - Palm 700p (Verizon) updateRead - Palm 700wx (Alltel) update
Leap wants FCC to stop Verizon's Alltel buy
Citing concerns over competition (or lack thereof), Leap Wireless has formally asked the FCC to ixnay on the urchasepay of Alltel by Verizon. The argument's a pretty well-worn one at this point, focusing on roaming agreements that the regional carrier relies on to let its customers go about their business when outside the reach of Leap towers and the concern that the merger will lead to the collapse of some of those agreements. In Leap's case, dead roaming agreements quickly lead to coverage gaps and a significantly impaired ability to do competitive business. Though the FCC is forcing a number of concessions to preserve competition in the wake of a merger, Leap clearly doesn't think it's going far enough; indeed, Verizon's promise to honor existing roaming agreements after the merger goes through is nothing more than a promise at this point, and not an explicit part of the conditions that the FCC is demanding. The proposed acquisition has built up a ton of steam and is widely expected to breeze through the regulatory process anyway, so Leap's move might be largely symbolic -- but at least they've got their customers' best interests in mind here.[Via MobileBurn]
MobiTV breaks the 4 million subscriber mark
MobiTV has been around for quite awhile, and although it has seen its fair share of ups and downs, today's a day for celebration in the offices that remain. After hitting the 3 million mark in February, the company is now claiming that its benefiting from some 4 million subscriptions. Charlie Nooney, MobiTV's CEO, was quoted as saying that the firm was "thrilled to be on the cusp of mass market acceptance for mobile entertainment in North America." We don't know if we'd go that far just yet, but here's a tip of the hat to you anyway.[Via RCRWireless, image courtesy of PDAsNews]
Verizon willing to shed 15 percent of Alltel base to make merger happen
You've got to give a little to get a little, as they say, and giant, multinational joint ventures apparently aren't exempt from the mantra. In buttering up the ladies and gentlemen of the FCC enough to approve the takeover of Alltel, Verizon Wireless has agreed to spin off 85 markets' worth of Alltel subscribers in 18 states, which tallies up to about 15 percent of its 13 million-strong base. The move is designed to preserve competition, particularly in rural areas where some customers could suddenly find themselves with just a single carrier in town with enough signal strength to get the job done. There's still no telling whether the FCC will ultimately approve the move -- it could demand additional concessions or strike it down outright -- but it's a start.[Via Phone Scoop]
Alltel adds messaging to My Circle
This ain't your grandpappy's My Circle. Well, actually, it pretty much is, with one small change: customers signing up for a My Circle messaging plan of $7.99 or higher on Alltel will now get unlimited messaging within their Circle, while the non-Circle bucket starts at 400 per month. The $19.99 "All Access Pass" is still available too, which rocks unlimited messaging to everyone regardless of whether they're cool enough to be in your Circle -- and it includes mobile web access, to boot. The new plans are available immediately.
Alltel rolls out Boingo-powered nationwide WiFi service
Although Alltel is busy courting Verizon's amorous advances, it looks like the carrier is still serious about rolling with the big boys -- it's just announced a nationwide WiFi service powered by Boingo. Subscribers can opt for $20/mo or $4/day plans, and score access at over 25,000 hotspots in airports, hotels, bookstores, coffee shops and restaurants. Alltel wireless customers can also opt for the $70/mo Internet Anywhere bundle, which gives you unlimited EVDO and WiFi access. Of course, all these plans could change when the Verizon deal finally goes down, but we'll see how that plays out in the future -- at least you're not being locked into a contract.
Alltel tried to buy Sprint, T-Mobile and AT&T as a public company
Unless you've been camped out under a Rhode Island-sized boulder for the past few weeks, chances are you know that Verizon has announced its intentions to acquire Alltel. During a recent interview with CEO Scott Ford, Talk Business host Roby Brock was able to get quite a few talking points out of the exec that didn't involve the most recent transaction. More specifically, Mr. Ford noted that prior to Alltel becoming a private company, it had "tried to buy Sprint three times, tried to buy AT&T Wireless [and] tried to buy T-Mobile." He continued by saying that "some of those times it went with partners, [while] some of those times it didn't." Essentially, Alltel was "doing everything it could to get to a national platform." Believe it or not, those quotes really are just the tip of the iceberg, but the full spill is entirely too detailed for this space. If you're curious to know what might have been, break out the reading glasses and hit the link below.[Via mocoNews]
Alltel kicks off EV-DO Rev. A deployment
With LTE a few years out yet, Alltel needs something to get it over the 3.5G hump -- and seeing how it's presently a CDMA carrier, you can pretty much guess where this is going. Sure enough, Verizon's newest partner in crime has announced that the rollout of its EV-DO Rev. A upgrade is now underway, promising a bump in downlink speeds from 400-700kbps on the existing Rev. 0 network to somewhere between 600kbps and 1.4Mbps. Uplink speeds are where Rev. A really shines, though, blazing as much as ten times faster than it did before -- 800kbps on a good day with bursts of up to 1.8Mbps. Two data cards are being offered to take advantage of the service -- one from Huawei and one from UTStarcom -- while compatible handsets currently include the HTC PPC6800 and Touch. The rollout is targeted for "select markets" right now -- Charlotte, New Orleans, Phoenix and Tampa among a total of 18 -- with overall EV-DO coverage continuing to expand as well; Alltel's targeting 82 percent of its footprint to be upgraded by year's end.
Alltel boasts Samsung's SCH-R430 MyShot in black or red
Sure, Alltel's Samsung SCH-R430 MyShot may not be laden with every bell and whistle that cell manufacturers can bestow on a device, but for $30 bones after rebate, who cares? This looks to be the ideal Ma and Pa cellular vehicle with 205 mins talk and 215 hours standby time -- so it's always charged when retrieved from the glovebox -- a 1.3 megapixel camera, and is even GPS-capable. Color choices include Metallic Red and Basic Black, so a his and hers arrangement isn't out of the question -- we think that's just about the cutest thing a couple can do. The read link will get you to the product page if you're itching to know more[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Verizon Wireless brings My Circle-esque plan to Business subscribers
From the moment Verizon Wireless made its intentions to purchase Alltel official, subscribers of the latter began wondering what the fate of My Circle would be. As it stands, there's still no definitive answer on that topic, but VZW is introducing a new feature for its Business users that bears a striking resemblance to Alltel's current merry-go-round. The plan, which is only available to customers of the Verizon Freedom for Business unlimited long-distance service, enables users to have unlimited conversations with five chosen numbers for $4.99 per month. Sadly, we haven't a clue whether the carrier is planning to roll a similar option out to its non-enterprise users, but the timing here is certainly curious, wouldn't you agree?[Via InformationWeek]
Alltel's Palm Treo 755p gets firmware update
Have a Palm Treo 755p on Alltel? Check it: your lil' buddy's just received an official update from the mothership. Little is known about what greatness lies within this new 1.03 version of the binary; all Palm's saying on the matter is that it resolves a "reset issue" under "specific and rare conditions." So if you found that your phone was spontaneously rebooting every time you sat in on a crawfish eating competition while wearing sandals, you may have stumbled upon those specific and rare conditions, in which case hearty congratulations are in order. Whatever, just download the update, will ya?[Via Palm Infocenter]
Verizon Alltel merger would form largest carrier in the US (by far)
Just a quick bit of math and you can see that today's news doesn't bode well for AT&T, which has been enjoying its position at the top of the heap in major US cellphone carriers for quite some time now. While AT&T has a solid 71m subscribers under their belt, number two Verizon has 67m and number five Alltel has 13m -- which means this merger could potentially put 80m customers under the same roof. Clearly being able to claim the "most reliable" AND most widely used network in the US makes it a tantalizing deal for VZW, but the ~$2,100 they'll be paying per subscriber isn't lightyears away from the notoriously overinflated amount Sprint paid in their heyday for Nextel. That merger cost $36 billion, which turned out to be ~$2,350 per sub at around 15 million Nextel customers -- and we all know how well that deal turned out for Sprint. But we're sure they're thinking this will go more along the lines of AT&T's merger with Cingular, which worked out pretty damned well so far. So what's this thing named, anyway? Verizon Alltel? Veritel? Allizon? We think just Verizon, thanks.
Verizon gets official with $28 billion Alltel acquisition
It looks like those talks between Verizon and Alltel were pretty deep after all, as the two companies have just come out and made the acquisition official. According to the official announcement, the aggregate value of the transaction is $28.1 billion, and the two companies are aiming to have it completed by the end of the year -- assuming all the necessary regulatory approvals come through. For its part, Verizon is of course boasting that this is a win for customers all around, saying that the merger will create an "enhanced platform of network coverage, spectrum and customer care to better serve the growing needs of both Alltel and Verizon Wireless customers for reliable basic and advanced broadband wireless services." Alltel President and CEO Scott Ford also echoed that sentiment, although his role with the future company seems to be less than defined at the moment, with the official announcement only going so far as to say that he will continue in his current position as head of Alltel "until the merger is completed."[Via ArkansasBusiness.com]
Verizon "in talks" to buy Alltel for $27 billion
Verizon has certainly courted Alltel before, but this time, the two could finally be rounding third base. According to a breaking report at CNBC, Verizon is "in deep in talks to acquire Alltel," which of course is America's fifth largest wireless carrier. It's no secret that Alltel has been riding fairly high of late, and unless your memory is totally shot, you'll likely recall that it was just recently "taken private by TPG and Goldman Sachs Capital Partners in a $27.5 billion deal." Not surprisingly, officials at both outfits refused to comment on the rumblings, but if this does indeed go down, analysts are expecting Verizon to pay around 8x Alltel's current EBITDA, whereas TPG / Goldman Sachs paid 9.2x. We'll keep you posted on any developments.Update: The talks have been confirmed by Vodafone which owns a 45% stake in VZW.
