CNBC is reporting that Verizon Wireless is deeply involved in talks to buy rural cellphone giant Alltel Wireless for an estimated $27 billion. Alltel was recently taken private TPG and Goldman Sachs Capital Partners.
Verizon has long been looked at as the ultimate purchaser of Alltel, but failed to bid when the company was auctioned in the spring of 2007. According to people involved in that auction, Verizon believed Alltel’s valuation was too high.
Of course, that was a far different time in the credit markets, when financial buyers were routinely outbidding strategic buyers despite the cost savings and revenue synergies available to the strategic buyers.
What do you Alltel customers think of joining Verizon?
Will you go willingly?
Verizon in Talks to Buy Alltel for $27 Billion [CNBC]
(Photo: DWQ )
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I’m in the same boat. I’m out in Western Kansas and Alltel has been the only decent carrier out here. All of the other big companies (Sprint, AT&T, etc) only get decent reception if your close to Wichita, Topeka, Kansas City or on the interstate (I’m 60 mi south of I-70 so no coverage). I’ve been happy with them. My few customer service dealings went over smoothly (mainly activating a new phone that I got from eBay). I’m very curious to see what this is going to do for available phones/rates/services. I’m probably screwed either way. Bah.
@kazoni:
Kazoni, are you in Hays? IIRC, when I went to school out there from ’98-02, alltel was the only worthwhile provider in town. There was/is Westlink, but I think that they are a VERY regional GSM provider. One thing that I liked is that I could go to the alltel store on Vine and swap out a broken phone for a refurb/used phone out of a box for $10, no act fee.