Ryan C

I've always had good service with AT&T (been with them since Cingular). When we got 3G here years ago, service got even better. I get 4-5 bars in my iPhone 3G in my basement, which is 3 feet underground.

And 3G speeds kick ass. I have pretty much stopped using Wi-Fi at home because 3G is just as fast and uses less battery.

Why didn't the Russians de-orbit the satellite?

Morons.

The UK is just hating on the American companies.

It's ok. We understand jealously on this side of the pond too.

Expect Huawei and Ericsson to get most of Verizon's business.
Alcatel-Lucent, Ericsson, and Nokia-Siemens are likley for AT&T.

They'd have to lose a ton of customers, like 30 million more.

Even if the FCC said that either company could snatch up Sprint and not face antitrust scrutiny, Sprint's financials are so bad, I don't think either company would want to touch them. While Big Blue and Big Red add around 2 million customers a quarter and have increasing profits, Sprint loses about 750,000 a quarter and has falling profit margins and increasing churn.

In a failing economy, AT&T and Verizon are two of the safest companies.

The wireless industry is a duopoly. AT&T and Verizon are the two big contenders. Yes, Sprint and T-Mobile are national carriers, but AT&T and Verizon pretty much dictate the wireless world. Sprint and T-Mobile both have lower rates, AT&T and Verizon are identically the same rate-wise.

They're buying the assets, which include customers, spectrum licenses, and owned towers/antennas.

I see no reason why the DOJ would reject this. In most of the markets AT&T would be getting, they have local service in the popluation centers or rely on Alltel's GSM network for roaming. This would be bringing in another competitor, which gets the FCC and DOJ wet.

We're fighting 2 wars, have a self-destructing economy, need to figure out where all the Gitmo prisoners are going, and the Democrats are all stuck up about the DTV transition date?

Give me a break.

Don't these politicians have more important things to do other than worry about the DTV date? This date has been set in stone, now they want to change it.

I hate this administration. One week and they're already pissing me off.

Don't know if it will have a monthly fee, but it does have 3G
http://www.boygeniusreport.com/2009/01/25/att-3g-microcell-a-femtocell-coming-sooner-than-we-think/