AT&T acquires Centennial for $944M, nets 1.1 million new customers
November 7 2008 - 7:44 pm ET | Mike Dano | RCR Wireless News
AT&T Inc. announced it acquired Centennial Communications Corp. for $944 million in cash. If the deal closes, AT&T will add 1.1 million Centennial customers to its current customer base of 74.9 million.
The deal will not, by itself, help AT&T regain the top spot in the U.S. market. Although the carrier currently holds the position, it will soon to lose it to the combination of Verizon Wireless (70.8 million customers) and Alltel Communications L.L.C. (13 million customers).
AT&T said the transaction would enhance its coverage in the rural areas of the Midwest and Southeast United States and in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
"Mobility is a vital investment area for AT&T and our company's biggest growth driver," said Ralph de la Vega, president and CEO of AT&T Mobility. "This transaction enhances network coverage for our consumer and business customers and is expected to create long-term value for AT&T's stockholders.”
AT&T said it hopes to obtain the necessary approvals for the deal by the second quarter of next year.
November 19, 2008 05:57 pm
The interesting piece of information is that AT&T is able to add 1.1 million customers for 944 million, while Verizon just became number 1 wireless provider by purchasing Alltel for 28 billion. AT&T is the recipient of Centennial's recent store expansion, call center expansion, and business office expansion without having to deal with all the construction issues. Also the Centennial phones use a sim chip like AT&T which means the customer conversion should be manageable. AT&T also eliminated a competitor and is able to safely stay at the number spot for largest wireless companies.
November 11, 2008 06:01 am
Hmm. Is ATT going to have to go through the FCC and DoJ crap that VZW just went through? If not why? Yes, Centennial is smaller, but it would only make sense that they would treat all companies the same, no matter how big they are. Or does everyone just hate VZW for being the best at what they do?
November 11, 2008 06:04 am
Check this out!! There are a lot of Centinnial stores around Mississippi!!