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Verizon Buys Unicel

Posted 2007-08-01 13:13 in Other-Tech-News by Don Mayer

Vermont gets left in the cold again as wireless giant Verizon snapped up Unicel (Rural Cellular Co.) for about $2.5 Billion.
This will make Verizon the only (to speak of) wireless provider in the Green Mountains.

Making this deal also could spell the end of the Unicel GSM network as Verizon switches Unicel customers back (Unicel just recently made the expensive conversion to GSM) to CDMA phones.

Worse yet, it gives Verizon a virtual monopoly in Vermont. Competition breeds creativity and it is a well documented fact that it is the consumers that lose in monopolistic situations.

Further, this portends poorly for those that were hoping for iPhones in Vermont. Since Apple has an exclusive with A T & T we are going to have to wait for either the remote possibility that A T & T will build some towers in Vermont or that Apple’s exclusive expires.

The Vermont Attorney General, William Sorrel, is looking into the anti-trust aspects of this transaction but the state has little authority here because wireless providers are not regulated by the state.

So, Vermont will continue to be the only state in the union without iPhones but hey, we’ve got a lot of other things here in Vermont that even Steve Jobs would like!

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  1. It also means, as I mentioned on my personal site that it’ll also be impossible to get a SIM to use in an unlocked iPhone (even if that ever happens) because Verizon Wireless’s CDMA phones don’t use SIMs. So we really are stuck waiting for AT&T to build new towers or to allow people to always roam on Verizon’s towers.

    Now, I currently have a Verizon phone and it sure would be nice to use it here in Waitsfield, but I don’t think it’s worth sacrificing cellphone carrier options in Vermont.


    — Morgan    2007-08-01 14:06    #

  2. or perhaps Verizon will sell the GSM portion of it’s network to ATT or T-Mobile as that might be cheaper than ripping down the GSM transceivers… never saw this one coming. Also a huge problem here in NH as ATT has roaming agreements to use Unicel’s GSM network. If Verizon turns it off, GSM coverage in New England in general is about to get much much worse.


    — pwrbkdude    2007-08-01 18:25    #

  3. Just to point out we do have Sprint…


    — DS    2007-08-02 22:24    #

  4. yeah we do have sprint but thay have the worst coverage out of all three


    — c    2007-08-03 10:44    #

  5. What about the fact the Verizon sucks (please excuse infantile language)?!! The lack of competition makes them lazy and greedy when it comes to customer service. EVERY month there is some overcharge on my bill and it takes up to four billing cycles for a credit to be issues, IF it is ever issued! This seems like a corporate policy designed to dupe customers who are less than vigilant about their bills. When I lived in Miami, Bellsouth did the same thing, but at least they would issue credits immediately. I hate verizon and I want AT&T. What do we do??


    — Tamara    2007-09-17 18:36    #

  6. This is really unfortunate. I recently hacked my Iphone to use a SIM from my Unicel phone. Now the Iphone thinks and acts as if it was a Unicel phone. If Verizon & Sprint are the only choices available, I guess its going back to cayying rolls of quarters for the occasional pay phone. Verizon is an unresponsive company, and I have been able to eliminate them at home thanks to Vonage.


    — gc    2007-09-18 22:00    #

  7. If the deal goes through Verizon has said they will keep GSM active and receive the revenues from roaming agreements


    — Curt    2007-10-04 11:45    #

  8. I wish AT&T would step up but I don’t think they care about little ol’ vt. What happened to the small dog guy who got a PO box and is trying to use AT&T that way? Did that ever pan out? If anyone has found a way to have an iPhone in VT I would like to hear about it.


    — Scott    2007-10-11 20:12    #

  9. AT&T can’t setup. RCC owns the FCC license and if/when Verizon transaction goes through it will belong to Verizon. Verizon at that point will have the option to sell off the frequency or keep it for roaming fees.


    — BG    2007-10-18 17:55    #

  10. well heres the latest news from the verizon deal: verizon has sold some of its purchases to at&t, at least in plattsburgh i guess, so that the gsm network will still be up. i dont think vt is getting at&t though….


    — James    2008-01-30 23:41    #

  11. I really think it is good for Verizon to buy unicel, they offer a lot better phones, and where i live, in Groton, where there is not towers i get service. They are using the money they get from the FPNE deal to buy Unicel. We have 90 days to put in our input. Everyone is urged to go to FCC.gov and say something about it!!


    — Kyle Bourtelle    2008-02-08 17:21    #

  12. I grew up literally next door to Bert and Coral Clifford. Bert was the founder of Unicell they were the nicest peolple and gave so much to the community. Its weird to see the company grow like it has over the past 20 years and become a multi billion dollar company. If Bert was still alive today he wouldnt of sold the company.


    — Jeremy    2008-02-16 12:34    #

  13. Word has it that verizon is going to be sold to AT&T, so if you now have unicel, you could have AT&T sooner than we thought, via verizon….which brings us that much closer to the iPhone!


    — Ya mama    2008-03-20 10:13    #

  14. oh k? so if verizon is going to be a monopoly there when they take over.. whats unicel now?? they would be a monopoly.. WOULDNT they? its not like verizon is going to change there rate plans and prices of phones just for the people in vermont.. this is just retarded.


    — Josh    2008-03-20 17:25    #

  15. My interest in AT&T coming to Vermont is two fold. First and foremost, I am a mac and iphone fan and would love to have an iphone. Second, seeing only one cell phone provider in VT and only one technology (CDMA only versus CDMA and GSM) would not be good for Vermonters.

    The sale has not gone through yet and it seems to have several obstacles. If it does go through at a minimum it will actually be a multiplayer/multitrade deal (analogous to player trades in sports) with Verizon and AT&T splitting up Unicell’s coverage in VT.

    Unicell owns business/coverage in many other states besides VT, and Verizon is interested in the whole package, not just VT. Due to FCC regulations Verizon will sell off Unicel’s “overlapping territory” in Vermont to AT&T. This means the greater Burlington, Rutland and Montpelier areas will get AT&T. Southern VT Unicel customers will not see AT&T but instead will get Verizon because this region is not an “overlapping territory.” Although, this is a start in the right direction for many reasons there is legitimate concern about loosing GSM service in southern VT. On top of this VT regulators want a real commitment from AT&T and Verizon to expand coverage throughout the entire state. This is important but I hope it doesn’t stop the sale. Furthermore, VT, as a whole, has to make it easier for these companies to expand (i.e. ease regulations and issues to raising towers, etc..)

    If the sale goes through as planed in mid 2008 it may bring the iphone to Vermont by the end of 2008, but before the Edge and/or 3G portions (3G iphone to be released in several months) of the iphone can be used AT&T has to perform significant upgrades to the current towers/networks, etc. Obviously Edge & 3G are key to some of the iphones more desirable capabilities. So it may be a while before VT sees an iphone that works as well as say Boston or New York areas.


    — CMM    2008-03-29 09:18    #

  16. I have sprint service and i can get out in alot of places in franklin county vt i can get out in east sheldon and alot of sheldon and just about any were all you need to do is get a signal stop driving make the call then drive away when your done but people cant do that they need to drive and talk


    — mort    2008-03-30 12:28    #

  17. I’d like to thank CMM. Not only have you posted the most accurate response here, but one of the only that makes proper use of our language, lol. He(?) is correct. Due to pressure from VPIRG and the good Bernie, as well as general consumer concern, most RCC consumers in VT would be free agents after the aquisition. That would leave you the choice between signing a regular contract w/ V on a cdma network, or signing a (usually sweetened) contract w/ ATT on the existing gsm. You see, the average cell consumer generates $50-55/mo in revenue. When a large corp devours a smaller cell provider, most times they’re willing to provide a sweeter than normal deal to assimilate that company’s consumers. Often times this also includes waiving the normal credit checks and deposits for customers of the existing provider. That’s a bonus since ATT has higher deposits for bad and no credit customers, so a return of deposit from RCC wouldn’t necessarily cover an ATT deposit. They will sometimes also offer to “grandfather” your contract terms. Not exactly an accurate word since grandfathering is keeping terms after a deal renovation, whereas this will be a fresh contract, but same general principal, and that could greatly benefit current RCC consumers, as ATT’s rates and plans for basic service aren’t as low to middle income-friendly.
    So, ATT gets the majority of VT from V for assets in the midwest that ATT got in the Dobson communications aquisition, fair trade, no monopoly in either region, everyone wins.


    — Finn    2008-04-24 11:09    #

  18. what does vermont have that steve jobs would want?


    — david mccausland    2008-05-06 14:57    #
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