AT&T Buying T-Mobile?

From the Associated Press;

AT&T Inc. said Sunday it will buy T-Mobile USA from Deutsche Telekom AG in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $39 billion that would make it the largest cellphone company in the U.S

They continue talking about how the merger, if it's not blocked by the FCC, would make AT&T-Mobile larger, by almost 30 Million customers, than even Verizon the current largest wireless carrier.

Anyone who knows me well can tell you that I am no fan of AT&T. I am however a fan of T-mobile as I was a customer of theirs for a while and truly enjoyed their service. So what could this merger mean and could this really make the two worst rated wireless companies (T-Mobile for least customers & AT&T for coverage reliability) into the true top dog?


The answer is maybe. I know that sounds lame and middle of the road but it's the truth. By sharing resources they could reinforce their good coverage areas and also share the burden of their LTE (Long Term Evolution) data network roll-out. On the flip side, the two company's coverage areas are fairly similar and don't really expand their reach through their merger.


While AT&T customers would benefit from a larger selection of phones, the T-Mobile customers would be the ones who would benefit the most because of the expanded coverage of the cell service and data network. The down side however is that with their merger comes the pressure to phase out the no-contract style plan and get everyone on to a standard two year plan. Of course there's always a push for consumers to upgrade to better phones and with the future of T-Mobile possibly including Apple's iPhone, I could see any one on the proverbial smartphone fence being nudged off.


Like anything else, we'll all have to wait and see how things play out over the coming months but I think ultimately it'll be more of the same for customers of both companies. For all of us it means there is less choice and competition when it comes to who provides our wireless service.


Did I hit it right on the head or am I severely off base? Either way, let me know in the comments below, or you can catch me by email, at twitter, or on Facebook.

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