Guide Note

American telecommunications company Verizon has agreed to buy regional service carrier Alltel. The $28.1 billion deal will create the largest wireless carrier in the United States.

The acquisition includes nearly six million dollars in cash and more than $22 billion in debt.¹

Fast Facts

1. $28.1 billion deal²
2. Verizon/Alltel combined would have 80 million customers³
3. Deal would make Verizon largest wireless provider over AT&T
4. Verizon executives promise $9 billion in cost savings in three years⁴
5. Alltel taken private in 2007⁵

The $28.1 billion deal, announced on June 5, 2008, would make Verizon the number one wireless carrier in the United States, with 80 million customers.

In 2007, Verizon backed out of a deal to acquire Alltel but CEO Ivan Seidenberg says the timing was right in 2008, saying the company, "always believed we were a natural partner (for Alltel) but we took a risk -- rather than overpay -- that there would be a better day. As it turns out, there's been a better day."⁵