The Eye

Verizon has entered into an agreement to buy Alltel for some $5.9 billion, and along with Alltel’s debts of around $22.2 billion this makes the price a total of $28.1 billion.

Alltel currently has 13 million customers; Verizon 67.2 miliion. The buy out gives Verizon a total of about 80 million subscribers, and puts them into #1 position over AT&T who have around 71.4 subscribers.

Alltel serves 34 states,  including 57 mostly rural markets.

Let’s hope the some of the cost savings produced by this merger, are passed onto customers, but I’m not about to hold my breath on that one.

It could prove of benifit to Alltel customers in terms of allowing them access to Verizon’s OPen Development initiative. This allows third party devices and services to use the Verizon network, and is rather at the opposite end of the scale when compared to the way that AT&T tried to tie down the iPhone to only it’s own network, and then not want to allow other thrid party services access to it.