Verizon may be buying Alltel.
It would give Verizon Wireless 80 million subscribers in combination. Between them and AT&T Mobility that would create a near duopoly of over 150 million subscribers. Looking ahead, the two also picked up over 80% of the licenses in the recent FCC 700 mhz auction.
In most other industries, the Feds would be closely scrutinizing a transaction with that much industry consolidation. But in this particular case, sounds like it also helps ease an exit for some of the financial institutions with a stake in Alltel.
So, given the banking angle the question is there a different Fed greasing the wheels? And who is representing the consumer interest in reviewing this transaction?
