It seems these days carriers are merging to compete with one another and so news of AT&T buying Alltel comes as no surprise since the carrier, before purchasing T-Mobile had been struggling with spectrum and keeping up with speeds. With T-Mobile and Metro PCS merging, AT&T does not want to be left out specially since T-Mobile is in a great position to offer non-contract customers great phones and a good network to back that up. Alltel’s parent company, Atlantic Tele-Network, Inc (ATNI), is also a cell provider in Guyana, Bermuda, and other Caribbean nations under different brand names. AT&T is only buying the domestic wireless portion, which operates under the Alltel brand, but is technically known as the Allied Wireless Communications Corporation.
All tell had this to say:
“We are pleased that AT&T recognizes the value of our US wireless retail operations and is acquiring these assets,” said Michael T. Prior, Alltel’s chief executive officer, in a statement. “Alltel’s customers will benefit from access to a nationwide 4G network, a larger device selection, additional retail locations and a broader range of product offerings.
Interestingly enough AT&T in my opinion seems to be in desparate mode, because well Alltel runs on a CDMA network vs AT&T is a GSM network, which makes me wonder if AT&T will keep Alltel as a separate entity or will they somehow merge the networks together.
Via: Ars
