Verizon Betting on  A Bundle
563476
Verizon Communications Inc., the nation's largest telephone company, announced yesterday it is digging up streets and stringing wire in six states, including Washington's Maryland and Virginia suburbs, to build a new fiber-optic network that will deliver high-speed Internet service and cable-style television to homes and businesses.
164536
The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Vodafone has given Verizon Wireless the green-light to make a bid to buy Sprint. &quot;Verizon Communications Inc.
747201
Cellular industry arch-rivals Nextel Communications Inc. and Verizon Wireless reached an accord yesterday, with Verizon Wireless agreeing not to sue to block regulators from giving Nextel control of airwaves worth billions of dollars.
602447
(InfoWorld) - Google and Intel have already expressed interest in the forthcoming 700MHz spectrum auction. Now, speculators say Apple may throw its hat into the ring. TheÂ auctionÂ is creating a bit of a frenzy because the winner will obtain some of the last available prime spectrum, ideal for delivering broadband wireless Internet access. The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) expects to auction it off next year. While Google has said that it may bid in the auction, Apple's participation is pure speculation, and analysts appear split on whether it makes sense for theÂ iPhoneÂ maker to become a network operator. Apple's entry into the carrier business, while interesting to speculate, is difficult to imagine since the company already has a "sweetheart deal" with AT&T, said Michael Gartenberg, an analyst with Jupiter Research. In an unusual arrangement for the mobile industry, Apple is thought to receive a portion of the monthly service revenue that AT&T earns from iPhone customers. AT&T is the iPhone's exclusive carrier. Gartner analyst Van Baker finds it "highly unlikely" that Apple would be interested in buying the spectrum. "It's a very different business than they're in, and it's not something they have a whole lot of expertise in," he noted. Apple could decide to partner with another company that has more experience in the mobile operator business, which could make more sense, Baker said. Still, the arrangement between Apple and AT&T looks beneficial to both companies, so there probably isn't a significant incentive for Apple to want to change that setup, especially because the operator business comes with "lousy margins," he said. However, Apple might have at least one good reason for wanting to operate a network, said Avi Greengart, an analyst with Current Analysis. "They do like to control the end-to-end experience," he said. While becoming a mobile operator would be a "tremendous stretch" for Apple, it wouldn't surprise Greengart if Apple was considering it. An Apple network would likely be very tightly integrated with Apple products and come with very simple pricing, he said. Such a strategy could have a ripple effect across the industry. Operators tend to watch what competitors are doing and make adjustments to their own strategies accordingly, he said. Greengart and the others cautioned that they hadn't heard directly from the company or other sources that Apple was considering the auction. "But they're pretty good about being tight-lipped," Greengart said. Apple is known for being very secretive, with big announcements leaking out only days in advance, if ever. BusinessWeek first reported on the rumor that Apple might be interested in the spectrum auction.
108156
Well, it looks like things are getting a bit more interesting regarding the Sprint/Nextel deal. It seems that Vodafone, which owns 45% of Verizon Wireless in the US, is supporting a move by Verizon to potentially buy Sprint PCS.
26783
Sprint&#39;s acquisition of Nextel Communications is fueling speculation of more deals to come in a telecommunications industry roiled by intense competition and rapid technological change.
406759
Sprint and Nextel, two of the top five US mobile phone carriers, are negotiating a merger, say people close to the proposed deal. The combined company would be worth about $70bn.
176392
Mobile ESPN is back on  the line. After hanging up its branded cellular phone package  in September, the Walt Disney Co. is re-entering the wireless  business with a pair of deals announced Thursday with Verizon  Wireless and MediaFlo USA.
346377
Rumors are swirling that the next massive wireless merger is in the works.
678074
The merger of Sprint Corp. and Nextel Communications, unveiled last week in a deal valued at more than $35 billion, is likely to spur deployment of broadband wireless services as three giant
75921
Sprint Corp.'s &#36;35 billion acquisition of Nextel Communications Inc. could challenge Cingular Wireless and Verizon Wireless for supremacy in a ruthlessly competitive business where prices are constantly dropping.
567460
The rumors of a Nextel Communications&#39; combination with Sprint aren&#39;t ringing the same regulatory alarm bells as the larger acquisition of AT&amp;T Wireless by Cingular Wireless.
431067
Verizon Wireless has partnered with mobile payment service Obopay to give its customers the option of using their phones as payment devices.
709075
AT&T Inc , Verizon Wireless and  Deutsche Telekom's (DTEGn.DE) T-Mobile USA on Tuesday announced  flat rate plans for unlimited calls in the United States,  raising investor concerns that a price war could break out and  sending shares lower.
99488
The Motley Fool - The lure of bundling services has been hanging over the communications industry for the past six years or so, although many companies have been unable to perfect a winning strategy. Bundling brings together services such as wired (local and long distance) and wireless phone service, Internet access, and satellite or cable television services.
506105
Vodafone recently considered making a full offer for Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) in an attempt to break the impasse over the future of its stake in US mobile phone operator Verizon Wireless.
648340
A tiny Pennsylvania telecommunications company is raising the hackles of giants Verizon Wireless and Cingular Wireless LLC, offering consumers unlimited cellphone calls for a $10 monthly premium by exploiting the carriers' unlimited mobile-to-mobile calling plans.