Posted by BrendaTx on 3/21/11 8:25am
Msg #376828

Goodbye, T-Mobile. :( Hello, AT&T.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/7483288.html

AT&T is monopoly bound, I do believe.

Reply by CorpJen on 3/21/11 8:40am
Msg #376829

I feel the worst cell carrier is attempting to purchase the best cell carrier. It will take some time for this to be approved in Washington. Effort can be made to voice opinions in Washington for the powers to disapprove of this monopoly.

Reply by Glenn Strickler on 3/21/11 11:08am
Msg #376848

Don't worry, no biggie.

Verizon is finding out that carrying the data for all those iPhones and iPads isn't as easy as they thought it was. They are now predictably having issues. At least in Southern California.

Something was / is going to happen to T-Mobile and Sprint. All you have to do is look at their financial statements. The stock of Deutsche Telekom, the German parent company, began to climb when the sale was announced, as the US operations are bleeding red ink. They have been looking to unload T-Mobile for at least 18 months.

As far as the Sprint / T-Mobile merger that was being discussed for the past year, they have incompatible networks and it would have been eventual death for both companies has a merger occurred. The reason why ATT has gotten a bad reputation is the big merger between Cingular and the old Att wireless. That was a combination of two incompatible networks that has caused nothing but trouble. Back in the "old cell phone days", my first carrier was LA Cellular. They had the contract for all the Southern California freeway call boxes and you could get service way out in the boonies. Then the old ATT bought LA Cellular and at that point, in my opinion, the service was the best on the planet. The problems began when Cingular bought the old Att. Cingular was pretty poor here and carried that over to the Att network. If you remember, the Att name went away, Cingular changed their name back to Att to try to repair their image. Didn't work. I have never changed carriers since my first cell phone. The network just change owners. I can say that service has gotten much better here in the past 4 months or so. If you are a T-Mobile customer worried about service, I don't think you need to worry. The networks are compatible and won't have the same issues as the Cingular / Att deal that caused all the problems.

If the merger is approved, in areas where T-mobile's service is horrible, like mine, the service should improve. Likewise areas where ATT needs help, T-mobile's network should help.

If you are worried about a monopoly, don't. There are a lot of regional carriers, such as Metro PCS and Leap wireless that are nipping at the big guys. Metro PCS is the fastest growing cell company in the country right now. There will still be competition. Take a look at retail. Wal-Mart has had 4 straight years of negative same store sales growth because of the local "99-Cent stores". Recession is a time when Wal-Mart sales usually grow. Not so this time around. Big companies usually get a large bureaucratic structure that costs money that the small companies usually don't have. Both Verizon and ATT will have to deal with that to keep their prices in line. Metro PCS is pretty cheap.

T-Mobile's problem is that they had their parent company in Germany sucking them dry and now dumping them. T-Mobile was going down one way or another. Sprint will have to merge or sell to someone, or they will just have to close up shop soon. Their network is compatible with Verizon.

In any case, it will take at least a year before any deal is finalized. I wouldn't jump ship as I bet there will be some deals to keep T-Mobile customers from jumping ship. So let your contract expire, if you have one, then when the deal is done, call them up and threaten to jump ship. I did, because I didn't like Cingular and I got a sweat-heart deal that I am still on today.

Reply by BrendaTx on 3/21/11 11:24am
Msg #376851

My T-Mobile Worries are

that I know how much higher AT&T is for the same that I have. I would be looking at a bill around $40-50 more to have the unlimited 'net and talk that I do now.

I can foresee me becoming less dependent on my smarty pants droid. There are some lines I won't cross...outlandish cable tv bills and high phone bills. I can learn to do with a lot less.

Reply by Sylvia_FL on 3/21/11 11:58am
Msg #376865

Re: My T-Mobile Worries are

OK years ago I had AT&T, I had no problems with them until one day I got the bill and it was double the normal bill. I looked at it, and it wasn't for the plan I had been on from day 1.
I called them and they told me that I wasn't on the plan I said I was on (really - only had the phone for over a year on the same plan). Couldn't get any satisfaction so I switched to T-Mobile. Then I found out that I had too many "dead areas" where I couldn't use the phone. And when I went over to the west coast of Florida to Fort Myers I couldn't get any service at all and I missed a lot of calls.
So, when my contract was up I called to cancel, they told me I couldn't call to cancel at that time without paying the cancellation fee. I told them I had had the phone for a full year and my contract was up at the end of the month. They said but I had to wait until the end of the billing period not from when I got the contract.
So, I switched to Sprint, anyone calling my T-mobile number got a voice mail giving my new number and why I switched service.
Had Sprint cell phone ever since - (2004) Should have gone with them in the first place as we have had Sprint for our long distance service since 1987 and always happy with the service.

Reply by Linda_H/FL on 3/21/11 12:03pm
Msg #376868

And I had the worse reception in the world around me

here when I had Sprint...

I talked to a lot of people down here when I was looking to switch and nobody liked Sprint, T-Mobile or AT&T...all bad bad bad... I ultimately switched to Alltel (at the time) who has since been bought out by Verizon - I get a signal everywhere. Very pleased with my service.

Reply by BrendaTx on 3/21/11 12:04pm
Msg #376869

I have been with TMobile since 2000 or '01.

It used to be Voicestream.

Brief intermissions with companies. Never as pleased as I am with TM.

Reply by Glenn Strickler on 3/21/11 12:05pm
Msg #376870

Unfortunately, Sprint wireless has

one foot in a grave and the other on a banana peel.

Reply by Glenn Strickler on 3/21/11 12:03pm
Msg #376867

Based on my past experience ....

They won't raise your current rates and they will offer you a deal to keep you as a customer. In any case, I wouldn't panic. It's going to be a year, if it is approved (and it will be, as the only other financial option for T-Mobile is shutdown or selling at a real cheap rate to a regional compatible carrier) they I will bet dollars to donuts, your bill won't change and they will make you an offer you can't refuse to stay a customer.

Reply by Bob_Chicago on 3/21/11 10:06am
Msg #376832

Funny , how we are coming full circle. I remember when

if you wanted phone service, you had a choice between AT&t and two tin cans with string.
Then they broke up AT&T and we had lots of chocies.
Then SBC acquired (then little) at&t and changed it's name to Ma Bell.
So far, it has worked out well. Remember when phones were like one wire bricks and only made calls, a long distance call was a big deal, with the whole family standing around to say Hi to grandma, and don't talk too long and if some one called and no one was home or they got a buzy signal, they just called back later??
Guess that it's progress, but things were sure a lot simpler then.

Reply by HisHughness on 3/21/11 10:23am
Msg #376833

Re: Funny , how we are coming full circle. I remember when

And when you went out of town, you had a prearranged code name to call back home on a person-to-person call, so that the homefolk would know you arrived safely and didn't have to waste money paying for a phone call.

Hell, I'm old enough to remember when you made that out-of-town trip by Greyhound.

Do any of you still-green-behind-the-ears -- to mix metaphors -- whippersnappers even have any idea what a person-to-person call was?

Reply by Philip Johnson on 3/21/11 10:38am
Msg #376834

Hugh, was it you that invented ship to shore with Columbus? n/m

Reply by DaveCA/CA on 3/21/11 10:41am
Msg #376835

Does anyone remember the party line?

You'd go to make a call, pick up the receiver and hear other people having a conversation.

Reply by kathy/ca on 3/21/11 10:44am
Msg #376837

Ha ha, I remember the party line, whippersnappers and.......

"Green behind the ears"! Giving away my age, yes, but happy to have made it this far!

Reply by Bob_Chicago on 3/21/11 11:01am
Msg #376844

" happy to have made it this far!" Wake up and your name

is NOT in the newspaper. It is a good day.

Reply by Moneyman/TX on 3/21/11 10:49am
Msg #376842

Re: Does anyone remember the party line?

I must be older than I thought.

I hated having to wait to make a phone call till so-and-so was finished with their phone call. Not to mention that we had to be careful because of one certain person on the party line always had her nose in everyone's business and would listen in on other people's calls.

Reply by BrendaTx on 3/21/11 12:05pm
Msg #376871

Party lines are still around out in the country.

A great reason to switch to 100% cellular, unless you have terrible reception.

Reply by Susan Fischer on 3/21/11 12:16pm
Msg #376874

Oh yeah. KYA, *the* teen radio station in San Francisco,

had "Dedications" where we called and dedicated a song to someone and they were read on the air.

The lines were so 'busy,' we could talk to each other during the "off" beat of the busy signal. Lasted about year, until Ma Bell figured out how to 'fix' it. Met lots of kids from all over the City.

Those were the days...

Reply by Bob_Chicago on 3/21/11 10:44am
Msg #376838

"Hell, I'm old enough to remember when you made that out-of

-town trip by Greyhound"
Hell , you probably remember when you traveled by stagecoach.

Reply by jba/fl on 3/21/11 3:36pm
Msg #376958

I remember the day of the last

Pony Express rider coming into town. We all gathered to greet him and mourn the loss of what became to be the last sensible thing the post office accomplished.

Reply by BrendaTx on 3/21/11 11:04am
Msg #376845

Almost dry, but about Person to Person

-Loved one arrived safely at destination and called back home, person-to-person, asking for themselves.

-If a baby's birth was being announced, dad had a p-2-p code. Ask for one person if it is a girl, another if it is a boy. Some folks even had a way of advising the weight and length.

I rode a Greyhound twice with family when I was a kid.

Took a train trip from Houston to Dallas when I was about four to go to the nearly brand new SIX FLAGS over Texas.

Reply by Glenn Strickler on 3/21/11 11:09am
Msg #376849

How about "party lines"? n/m

Reply by James Dawson on 3/21/11 10:42am
Msg #376836

Re: Funny , how we are coming full circle. I remember when

I Started work for Pacific Bell (AT&T) was the long distant carrier for Ma bell. We trembled at the thought of the breakup and thought they were trying to "water" down out technical skills to lower our pay (post office paid more). I retired just before the "divested" companies were starting to gobble each other up. 35 years later, it like nothing happened. Talk about full circle? Of course not to many people know what a phone booth is. LOL

Reply by kathy/ca on 3/21/11 10:47am
Msg #376840

James, I still see phone booths occasionally. n/m

Reply by Bob_Chicago on 3/21/11 10:49am
Msg #376843

"not too many people know what a phone booth is. "

Where DOES Superman go to change now?????

Reply by Moneyman/TX on 3/21/11 11:06am
Msg #376846

I've had two previous cell phone carriers that AT&T bought. Had to change to another service each time as prices went up and service went down.

Dealing with the 3rd one now. AT&T bought them a little over a year ago but they have to honor my contract for another year. AT&T has taken out all the phones in their local stores that will work with the service I have now (GSM phones) in an attempt to force anyone that needs a new phone (broken, stolen, etc) to sign new contracts with them under AT&T with the higher prices. It would cost me $30-$40 more a month to get even less than I have now under my current contract if I changed over.

<sigh> I was looking at T-Mobile as the carrier to go to when my contract ends.

Reply by BrendaTx on 3/21/11 11:30am
Msg #376853

Boost may be my next stop.

http://www.boostmobile.com/

Only problem I have found so far is (or was) that a number cannot be ported in.

Reply by HisHughness on 3/21/11 11:37am
Msg #376855

Re: Boost may be my next stop.

I have been with Boost now for three years, and have been extraordinarily satisfied, far more so than with my two previous carriers.

And I ported in my number that long ago, from the time when I was executive director of the LoneStar Fatherhood Initiative -- (512)797-DADS.

Reply by BrendaTx on 3/21/11 12:01pm
Msg #376866

Thanks, Hugh. That pretty much

swings my decision...$50 a month, with text, email and 'net, etc. unlimited.

Reply by Glenn Strickler on 3/21/11 12:07pm
Msg #376872

Boost mobile is owned by

Sprint, which is in deep financial trouble.

Reply by Glenn Strickler on 3/21/11 12:12pm
Msg #376873

In fact, I bet Sprint

won't make it the year without a merger..

http://finance.yahoo.com/q/is?s=S+Income+Statement&annual

Reply by DocumentDiva on 3/21/11 1:00pm
Msg #376897

Sad to see T-Mobile go

I was initially with LA Cellular that was bought by AT&T Wireless, then AT&T Wireless was purchased by Cingular, Cingular was then acquired by AT&T in a merger and now T-Mobile is being acquired by AT&T. I just can't get away from these guys!

I left AT&T for T-Mobile and have been satisfied ever since. Yes, their phone selection and coverage needs some work but at least I got good customer service and affordable plans. All I can do is shake my head.

In AT&T & T-Mobile Merger, Everybody Loses
http://gigaom.com/2011/03/20/in-att-t-mobile-merger-everybody-loses/

Reply by Glenn Strickler on 3/21/11 1:11pm
Msg #376903

No, Cingular was not aquired by ATT

Cingular bought ATT and for all practical purposes, ATT as we knew it was gone. Then about a year later, Cingular brought back and changed their name to ATT for marketing purposes, but the old ATT no longer exists. The Cingular management is still running things.

Reply by DocumentDiva on 3/21/11 1:43pm
Msg #376918

Re: No, Cingular was not aquired by ATT

Either way it goes or went it does not bode well for consumers.

Reply by Bob_Chicago on 3/21/11 1:45pm
Msg #376919

It getting a bit confusing, but , as I recall, AT& T was

acquired by SBC Global (Formerly Southwestern Bell one or the orignial "baby bells' ) which then changed it's name to the iconic AT &T name.

Reply by MikeC/NY on 3/21/11 5:55pm
Msg #376983

Re: It getting a bit confusing, but , as I recall, AT& T was

I was working for one of the Bell companies (Western Electric, the manufacturing arm) back in the 70's when the government broke up the monopoly. If I recall correctly, AT&T was allowed to handle long-distance and international calling, while the regional companies (Baby Bells) handled domestic. The two biggest of the regionals were Southwestern Bell and New York Telephone.

Southwestern Bell eventually became SBC Global, and it may have merged with AT&T at some point, but they were definitely two separate companies originally.

NY Tel expanded into New England and renamed itself NYNEX (for NY, New England, and "X" for an unknown future expansion); several years later, it became Verizon, which originally got into mobile telephones through a joint venture with a European company (Vodaphone?). Verizon continued to expand until it eventually acquired GTE, at which point it became a national network.

Cingular acquired AT&T, but kept the AT&T name because it was iconic and better known - and it had that neat "T" stock symbol...

My old company, Western Electric, the third piece of the Bell monopoly, eventually collapsed under it's own weight... Up to that point, telephones were owned by the phone company - you didn't buy them, you leased them - and they were only made or repaired by Western Electric (we were refurbishing phones that were 30+ years old at the time and shipping them out as new). Once the breakup happened, the regional Bells started producing - and selling! - their own phones; Western Electric was a dinosaur that simply couldn't compete in a free market under the new rules. What was left of Western Electric eventually became Bell Labs, which is really about research.

Things are beginning to come full-circle - the universe that expanded when the Bells were broken up is now starting to contract. Neither AT&T nor Verizon will ever be allowed to have a monopoly, but there's going to be a lot of pushing, shoving, and the occasional elbow thrown as they jockey for first place - sort of like a corporate roller derby... The little guys, from Sprint on down, will just be picking up whatever scraps the other two leave behind.

Reply by bagger on 3/21/11 1:54pm
Msg #376925

This explains it all, a good memory jogger

http://www.businessinsider.com/stephen-colbert-att-2011-3

Reply by DocumentDiva on 3/21/11 2:28pm
Msg #376935

Love the video. Thx for sharing. :) n/m

Reply by JanetK_CA on 3/21/11 5:00pm
Msg #376974

Colbert nails it again!

Pretty much right on target! Thanks for posting that! And yes, I'm ticked off at this probability. I just re-upped with T-Mobile about 4 moths ago and didn't even consider AT&T because of their lack of options (like NO unlimited data plan for cell phones!)

Back when "Divestiture" was first foisted on the original AT&T (in 1984), I was managing telecommunications for all of So Cal for a major brokerage company (with an aggregate monthly phone bill - exclusive of hardware - of about $100K). To say I was NOT a fan of AT&T is something of an understatement... Their hardware and network were typically about 10% more expensive and frequently not the best in terms of service and quality, in my experience. From my perspective, their approach was to try to get their clients to conform to their way of doing things; not the other way around!

It seems that we are now going full circle, and I don't see that as a good thing. When the antitrust laws were enforced and competition was foisted on them with the break-up of Ma Bell, we saw an explosion of innovation and choice and we were able to reduce costs and provide increased services. But now it seems we are going backwards. On a small scale, I've seen it happen with my home phone/land line, which used to be with another company but is now AT&T through acquisition. Rates have been steadily creeping up. The nickle and dime fees keep increasing and service options have decreased. I keep getting offers to conform to one of their combo options, but they don't meet my particular needs and wouldn't save me anything over the current choices I've made or improve my service level. They're just designed to try to pick up market share with some of the other services they're trying to break into (like TV service).

Our so-called anti-trust laws seem to be ignored anymore - in several other industries, as well - and I think we are all paying the price for it. (I'd better quit here... )

Glen, we may not have anything to worry about for the next year or so, but it's what may happen after that that bothers me. (I have a 2-year contract... When that's up, I hope there are still a number of viable choices left!)