gaforces
United We Stand, Divided We Fall
join:2002-04-07
Santa Cruz, CA | No market cap?
If cable has a cap, telco should too. They are getting too big and this merger/buyout should not be allowed. |
|
questionable
join:2005-10-18
Phoenix, AZ
 ·Qwest.net
1 edit | Hmm could be good could be bad
IF they take the best things from each company I think this will be a great merger.
But honestly what the likeliness of that happening?
I'm a Verizon Customer and It saves me a ton of money a month (fiancee talks to people back east who have Verizon ALOT), but i just don't see verizon doing the 5 10 or 20 plans that everyone loves altel for |
|
questionable
join:2005-10-18
Phoenix, AZ | reply to gaforces
Re: No market cap?
If they do the 33 percent cap that Cable has then Verizon could still buy Altel as 33 percent of 260 is 85.5 Million |
|
EPS
join:2008-02-13
Hingham, MA
1 edit | reply to gaforces
said by gaforces  :If cable has a cap, telco should too. They are getting too big and this merger/buyout should not be allowed. The cellular market is far more competitive than the cable market, because for the most part everyone overlaps and you can choose from usually four (sometimes less, sometimes more) carriers, while in cable the best you can hope for is one single cableco and maybe a telco TV service, and in some rare areas an overbuilder- three at most, usually one. The markets aren't remotely comparable. |
|
ftthz
If love can kill hate can also save
join:2005-10-17 | reply to questionable
Re: Hmm could be good could be bad
hopefully it won't end up like the sprint / nextel deal |
|
N10Cities
SILENCE I Keel You
Premium
join:2002-05-07
Roland, OK
clubs:
 ·Cox HSI
·World Lynx
2 edits | reply to gaforces
Re: No market cap?
Looks like it is a done deal (pending regulatory approval)..
»www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24983521/
I am an Alltel customer and I will be P*SSED if Verizon does away with the "My Circle" feature. Will go back to land-lines I guess as I wouldn't touch AT&T and Sprint with a 10 meter cattle prod... 
UPDATE: Looks like they will keep rates and plans in effect according to this article from one of Fort Smith's TV Station websites (KHBS). Will also be keeping the customer support intact, but may lose some corporate support personnel. Verizon is also thinking about making the Alltel HQ a regional HQ for Verizon..
»www.4029tv.com/news/16512330/detail.html |
|
Boricua65
join:2002-01-26
Puerto Rico
| reply to ftthz
Re: Hmm could be good could be bad
said by ftthz :hopefully it won't end up like the sprint / nextel deal Probably not, as Verizon and Alltel uses the same CDMA technology with EVDO.
--
Yo te digo, el mundo esta jodido |
|
JOsh72345
@rr.com | Deals gone through
»www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=···fer=home |
|
hottboiinnc
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH | reply to N10Cities
Re: No market cap?
They can only do away with it after your contract. If you keep the same contract and just go month to month then they can't take it. Sign a new contract from them. and BOOM! gone.
By this means more cell customers that you can call for free. |
|
AZ_OGM
join:2007-01-12
Phoenix, AZ | reply to N10Cities
T-Mobile has a Circle feature called "My Faves" Although it's only for 5 people, its better than what VZW and Death Star have to offer. |
|
questionable
join:2005-10-18
Phoenix, AZ | I have to disagree with you. Now you'll be able to talk to 80 million people for free!
LOL |
|
BioGeek
Premium
join:2007-08-25
West Orange, NJ | My Circle
Perhaps Vz will pick up the mycircle system...? |
|
gaforces
United We Stand, Divided We Fall
join:2002-04-07
Santa Cruz, CA
| reply to questionable
Re: No market cap?
They should add in the land-line, internet, and tv customers with the wireless customers when they consider the caps.
Regardless of their exploiting outdated and engineered US laws by spinning off separate company's for each division.
Internet- wired or wireless, voice, and TV are all data and carriers should all be considered as data carriers and be regulated as such.
--
There is no greater sign of a general decay of virtue in a nation, than a want of zeal in its inhabitants for the good of their country. ~ Joseph Addison |
|
iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Golden, CO
·Comcast
·Qwest.net
 ·magicjack.com
 ·BeeCreek Communica..
·Sprint Mobile Broa..
| reply to BioGeek
Re: My Circle
Hah, doubt it. It would be nice but now looks like my aunt, who just recently switched to Alltel, is gonna be back on a carrier she first started out on. Maybe VZW will change a term or two and let her get out of her (relatively new) contract for free and switch to Sprint SERO.
Though what worries me is now, with the 99.9% certain purchase (chills go up and down my spine at the thought...Alltel is more like Sprint IMO than VZ), Verizon is going to jack up roaming rates with Sprint and cut off the reciprocal agreements they have with Sprint as soon as they can. At that point Sprint will likely be forced to start charging for roaming again, and their customer base vaporizes, heading to T-Mobile (for those who are price sensitive) or to AT&T\VZW (for those who have to have the coverage). Darned domino effect.
Me, I am on Sprint and actually barely ever roam, and when I do it's on a small local carrier in a few areas where 1900 won't reach and 850 will, not on Alltel\Verizon. Though awhile back I did do a little data roaming on Alltel. I love Sprint's service and just converted a friend to their plans...he doesn't need unlimited now since his GF also uses Sprint...but this doesn't look good at all for the company.
On the bright side of things, looks like the former Alltel network will get a quick upgrade to EvDO Rev. A, vaulting CDMA coverage for high speed data so far ahead of AT&T that...well...it's not even funny. On the other hand, AT&T has prepaid data on the cheap and Verizon...doesn't.
In fact, VZ doesn't have ANY company-name (though some MVNOs are out there) "true" prepaid service. Wonder what Alltel's U Prepaid customers, who aren't under a contract, will be seeing? |
|
iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Golden, CO
·Comcast
·Qwest.net
·magicjack.com
·BeeCreek Communica..
·Sprint Mobile Broa..
| One more good thing that will come out of this: Verizon will have to divest a LOT of markets due to so much overlapping coverage. Maybe those will go to AT&T. Maybe to T-Mobile. Maybe to Sprint. Maybe to some other entity. Wherever they go though, that *might* make up for *some* of the lost competition, though I'm not all that hopeful. |
|
Dampier
Phillip M Dampier
join:2003-03-23
Rochester, NY
| Can you hear me now?
Verizon will be converting all of its existing Alltel subscribers into Verizon customers. The tradition with Verizon absorbing other companies is to rebrand everything as Verizon, but grandfather existing contracts. So existing Alltel customers can live out the balance of their contracts under their existing rate plans. In some cases, those rate plans will remain unless/until a customer cancels service altogether. Verizon has some grandfathered access plans that are still available to existing customers from companies long ago absorbed into the Verizon Wireless family. New people cannot sign up for them, and if you leave and try and come back, you can't under the old plan.
However, over time, Verizon's own plans look more and more attractive than a locked plan left over from a past merger, so eventually they do away with legacy plans when enough people drop them.
The alternative for Verizon is to simply force people to switch to a Verizon plan upon the expiration of their current Alltel contract.
What will be unlikely is for Verizon to adapt any Alltel features for rollout to the entire country. I'm sure if there was a competitive reason to do so, they wouldn't have waited for a merger with Alltel to roll them out. |
|
Nuts
join:2006-04-27
Forest, OH | I Just Left Verizon
I just left Verizon since they didn't offer EVDO service in my area. I really don't want to go back. |
|
iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Golden, CO
·Comcast
·Qwest.net
·magicjack.com
·BeeCreek Communica..
·Sprint Mobile Broa..
| reply to Dampier
Re: Can you hear me now?
Unfortunately, no competitive reason to do so. Verizon has the least features of any "big five" plan at a given price point (Alltel has My Circle, Sprint has 7 pm nights and weekends, AT&T has rollover, T-Mobile has lots more minutes) and will probably continue the trend.
Also is it just me or have Verizon's plans not changed for several years as far as regular voice plans go (messaging and data plans are a different story but they're still rather expensive), but for the introduction of unlimited service, which Alltel also has? I'm thinking that their plans, pending competition from another carrier...and big competition at that...will continue stagnated, giving Alltel customers no reason to swwitch over. As such, it'd be in VZ's interest to do a force switch at the end of Alltel customers' contracts, or so it would seem. Considering that Alltel's regional plans (which are still around) are so much better value-wise than Verizon's national plans... |
|
azinator
CS is the DEVIL
Premium
join:2000-08-12
Alma, AR | reply to N10Cities
Re: No market cap?
I'm curious about this as well...I'm in Alma, AR and have 4 phones with alltel...i love my circle...!!! |
|
krazymon2
join:2008-01-13
Coraopolis, PA
·Comcast
| reply to iansltx
Re: Can you hear me now?
You are right. Voice plans haven't changed much over the last few years. I signed up I right around 5 years ago, the only thing that has changed in regards to price for my voice goes is they gave me 50 more per month. They don't matter to me though since all but about 2 of my friends are with Verizon. They simply get the best coverage around here period. |
|
