Verizon and Alltel to merge?

I go into services (hidden mode), force mode, and select PCS only, which gives me sprint. and usually works fine. I don't need sprint in my NAM settings for this reason (But 4376 is in my NAM1 index anyway).

My NAM1 settings are for Alltel Carolina Priority
My NAM2 settings are for Verizon SC, NC, NJ, NV, NYC, & Philly Priority - places i visit the most

Now i just got a replacement phone last week and everything worked fine. I called Alltel CS yesterday and asked about the verizon trouble with authentication. He told me of a so-called outtage that would be restored. Today, Sprint is giving me the same trouble.

Here in Gaffney, i only use Alltel & Verizon because of their stong signal. I am probably going on a trip to NJ by the end of this month (wheres theres no Alltel). so i hope its fixed before then. I guess i'll just call cs again monday to find out what the f is up with it

 

When you travel, just keep it in automatice or search. Don't mess with anything. You could end up with no service. That happened to me in Boston once. DON'T dial *228 out of an Alltel area!!!

 

Williamsburg is tough, lots of NIMBY's. I do know that Alltel has built quite a few towers in Hampton-Rhodes in the past few years and that the network is very strong there. Maybe it is second behind Verizon...but they are usually matched or one usually has a slight edge of the other. I know I have very good service when I go to VA Beach and Norfolk. I hope your family does not travel to the OBX or ENC often..Verizon blows there.

 

They do go to NC to do fishing quite a bit, but other then that they stay between VA Beech & Richmond.
They do come up here and to Syracuse NY once or twice a year.

 

I've had several people tell me that they're putting up a couple new towers in Williamsburg for the tourist influx they're expecting for the 400 yr anniversary of Jamestown this year. I'm not sure if they're suppose to be on yet or coming soon. I'm only up that way about once a month and I thought I noticed a little better signal last time I was there, but it was possibly the weather or just my mind. But I always thought that Alltel and Verizon were fairly equal in the area but I don't live there and go into the downtown shops in Williamsburg much at all so I really couldn't compare coverage for either there. But pretty much, Alltel and Verizon are your only hope because they're the only ones not PCS. Wherever it was they had trouble, maybe Alltel can get a new tower location in Williamsburg. I think some of what really hurts Alltel in owning most of their towers, is the coverage layout is a little different than all the other carriers that rent tower space. Sometimes they're not as high because they're only designed for one carrier, or at a little different angle or location, and people tend to notice so much more when they can't make a call when others can, rather than when their phone works and others don't.

Overall, I would still rate the Alltel system as the best in Hampton Roads, the only place where I've really noticed improvement could be used is up in the northern tip of Suffolk going toward Chuckatuck. It's like 1-2 bars the whole way while you pass a number of towers (I'm assuming for the PCS carriers). But with Verizon, I was really disappointed in the lack in in building coverage in Norfolk which is where I am primarily and a couple places in Virginia Beach where Alltel has always done great. To quote one of my friends standing at his apartment window last weekend while I was on a full signal and he was trying to send a text, 'Of course I can't send it, I have Verizon.' But Verizon probably still has the most customers here because the system is decent and they have the biggest stores that just stick out so much more than anybody elses and relatively few people actually compare plans to see what they can get at Verizon vs. anybody else.

 

I am sure they are working hard to get the towers up for the anniversary, especially how big of an event they expect it to be.

They do live closer to William & Mary & Colonial Williamsburg and I am not sure if that has an effect on coverage, the closest tower I saw was the water tower on 199.

I didn't have too bad of coverage with Cingular, but in some stores it was poor to nothing, at Jamestown I was ok with coverage and didn't expect full coverage everywhere, since that was the old Suncom network & I don't know how much Cingular has been doing down there.

 

You know, that really seems to be the part of the city I hear the most complaints about with just about every carrier and everybody I know that actually goes to W&M. I've heard that the W&M wireless network really interferes with cell signals from every provider though I'm not sure how much truth there is to that vs. just the tower layout. And colonial Williamsburg is the main place where they seem to restrict towers because teepee's just don't look right with a tower in the background. :browani: But you'd think a tower company could reach a deal to put one up on the corner of campus for every provider because college kids in dorms really need reliable service not only to keep in touch with family but as a safety issue IMO.

I've never carried a Cingular phone but I've heard Cingular has really improved it and added at least one new tower since they got it from SunCom which is why they're the best PCS carrier for the area from what I can gather by people talking about their service.

 

I agree with it being tough in Colonial Williamsburg & even Jamestown for towers, I am sure they could put antenna's on the sides of the arena & they wouldn't stand out much or if at all, and with some of the churches near there, they could use the bell towers (if Williamsburg would let them).

When I was out at the battlefields and all along the Colonial Pkwy coverage was good with my Cingular, which with all the woods along the Pkwy I was suprised in some sections.

 

Alltel call quality in Williamsburg was really crappy and the connection time took an eternity if it actually did connect.........my cousin has VZW and she had full bars almost everywhere but i think they were lower on the PRL.......which really sucks

 

Yeah, but it's really hard to judge the call quality of a network by a couple roaming experiences anyway and I'm not entirely convinced that there's no prioritizing of calls with CDMA. I've always thought calls through Alltel in Williamsburg were just fine and no better or worse than the VZW network in Williamsburg when I was with them, just my opinion formed from my experience though.

Besides, also out my own experience, in Blacksburg, VA, I always roam on Verizon there and the calls sound horrible but there's no Sprint network. It always sounds like talking on a walkey talkey and I never can make out what the other person is saying easily. I try to avoid calls there as much as possible. But one time I switched phones with a Verizon customer because he looked at me like I was crazy when I was talking about the call quality and I made sure we were both on the Verizon network by checking SIDs. Needless to say his phone sounded great but he said mine sounded like the other person was talking through a muffler. I don't know if it was the channel or some type of prioritizing, but it's hard to judge an entire network just by that experience.

 

There probably is a way to regulate which phone uses what codec maybe?

 

yeah your prolli right...........my cousin had Verizon in VA and the call quality was great........i was really disappointed when i didnt roam on them

 

So if the merger does happen with the big VD...ah, I mean VZ and Alltel...who do you think will be the beneficiary of the divestures. For instance in the Carolinas and VA where both VZ and Alltel have the A & B sides? Columbus, GA, lots of Ohio. Any speculation? Will USCC end up growing to the size of premerger Alltel?

 

AT&T and Alltel are negotiating the sale now. Looks like it's going to be AT&T. Verizon is too focused on buying Vodafone's stake of VZW, and I read on CNNMoney.com that VZW's PR said that there would be no acquisitions made by them in the near future.

 

Where did you see this? I think the ftc will have an issue esp. after approving the recent merger with bs/cingular.

 

yeah......that looks like special treatment to me............hehe.

but yeah VZW should focus on having itself all together rather than be split up between companies.........that creates opposition and problems.........and then you dont move forward cuz 2 companies may disagree on a big decision.............VZW should focuz on getting the other 40% from Vodafone

Alltel should divest to USCC to expand the company and make them bigger for more competition......

and i still thin that when Sprint is done with Nextel........they should either give up their 800 MhZ licenses to Southern LINC and SLINC should go national for more competition.........or Sprint should make those 800s CDMA for the overhaul that might be caused by migration of Nextel customers in certain areas

 

I don't believe what they say for a second. Verizon Wireless knows quite clearly what is at stake with Alltel. I think they want to keep things close to the vest right now. I think the things Verizon execs are saying is meant to keep up the drama. Why would they want to reveal their "hand", so to speak?
We'll just have to wait and see how this drama plays out...

 

watch......Verizon will do something completely unprecedented

 

I think what ever happens is going to be crazy, unless it's a seperate company like US Cellular or Dobson or a private equity firm that buys them.

I know Verizon did make the statement they weren't interested in any mergers, but that doesn't mean they won't try something behind closed doors to keep attention off them.

It's interesting to see all the speculation going on with this in the media & if AT&T does get them, I am sure it will cause even more speculation & rumors until the Justice Dept. & FCC go over it.
Either way it looks like it's going to be an interesting year so far.

 

i personally dont think the FCC will chance another merger this year..........i predict that this year is just going to be an expansion year for all companies

 

I personally don't think that Verizon would allow a close competitor like Cingular buy out ALLTEL. Like Fire said, we never know what goes on behind closed doors. Pesonally, I am against either Verizon or Cingular buying ALLTEL, but at the same time I hope that whatever happens, ALLTEL remains a primary CDMA carrier.

 

i am against that as well........Alltel is a really crucial competitor in the cellular race......losing them might make rates go up and make the mergee a slower company cuz there is more to handle........a merger just isnt good at this point in time

 

Losing ALLTEL 'may' not raise prices, it Will raise prices! The end of AT&T Wireless started the continuation of rising prices due to less competition! It has just gotten worse from then.

 

Although I could care less about Alltel, I don't want anymore buyouts/mergers amongst the top 5 companies. The rates aren't all that competitive to begin with (there are always flaws ); a mega merger will lead to higher prices and/or monopoly issues.

When ATTWS went away, Cingy got more hardcore with their offerings and policies... and I didn't see any price decreases

 

I will let you decide whether you think a VZW/Alltel deal would be anti competitive. This is a list of states where it is mostly likely you will see a divestment. This could be 1 market up to the entire state.
California
Nevada
Arizona
New Mexico
Nevada
Utah
Idaho
Montana
Wyoming
North Dakota
South Dakota
Minnesota
Iowa
Illinois
Ohio
North Carolina
South Carolina
Georgia
Virginia
Tennessee

Maybes
Florida
Michigan

 

For sure there would be divestments, but I don't think this means that it is not going to be anti-competitive. IF Alltel disappears and another national carrier gobbles them up, a great competitor is lost, and even with the divestments, no new competitor will be created- fewer competitors, as has happened within the last few years, means higher prices.

 

i agree...............ALLTEL presents major competition in the U.S.........they arent present everywhere but they are important competition........losing them well send prices up in those areas.......

 

I agree, it's not an "if" but would be a "Will" raise prices for everyone on all the carriers.
And it did seem to start with the Cingular/AT&T Wireless merger.

 

If that trend happens, I think you will see people try to get discounts wherever they can. If I loose my Alltel 20% discount through work, I would probably hop on Sprint and get 23% off everything. I am cheap :browani:

 

If Verizon wasn't the best provider at my home, I'd be on Sprint (15% discount thru the state off everything), Alltel, or TMobile (just because they're cheap). For now, I'm happy with VZW despite its high prices and crazy discount policies.:loony: