How Does Dr. Koop Survive (And Buy Other Companies)?

Bell South To Buy Sprint?

from the more-phone-mergers dept

Thu, Mar 15th 2001 12:28pm — Mike Masnick

Don't they ever learn? The phone companies keep on merging and merging. The latest is that Bell South is looking to buy Sprint. The same article suggests that SBC is in talks to buy Worldcom. I hope we get some more pointless name changes. I'm finally remembering who Verizon and Cingular are. I need a few more new phone company names to confuse me as they play ridiculous TV commercials that explain to me why this new brand is the killer phone company brand.

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Burt Masnick, 15 Mar 2001 @ 2:57pm

Merging Phone Companies
Actually, it's not so dopey that the telcos are merging. There is a massive infrastructure expense in front of them as the telcos gear up for the wireless, data heavy new world awaiting us. It just doesn't make sense because of the massive costs associated with building that infrastructure that the equipment and the huge expense be duplicated by each company. Unpalatable to predict a small number of giant, impersonal telephone monopolies but economics probably makes that the future. Back to Ma Bell uber alles.
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Mike (profile), 15 Mar 2001 @ 8:51pm

Re: Merging Phone Companies
Heh heh. Not to start a family battle or anything... but... let me explain. What I meant is that from a consumer point of view, it's been pure hell. First there's the general confusion - who the hell is Cingular anyway? And for the most part they've been terrible at integration. The folks I know who were using Verizon flipped out when it turned out their cell phone in San Francisco wouldn't work in Seattle - even though Verizon is in both places.

I understand it looks good on paper... I just think the execution has been pretty dreadful. Anyway, if the economics made sense for a single phone monolith, then why'd Ma Bell get broken up in the first place?
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