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ATT takes over TMO any reason to unlock?
- Thread starter rans0m00
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No, the biggest reason I want an unlocked iPhone is so I can use local SIM cards when I'm overseas. Also, locked iPhones are worthless to foreign buyers when its time to sell my current phone on eBay to buy the next model. If we ever get the NCK unlock (or even an updated version of ultrasn0w), my days of using locked iPhones will be over.
History? Large mergers of this kind can typically take longer than a year....not to mention this one needing federal anti-trust and FCC approval.
He's right.
It will be at least a year or more.
The way it works is this. They've announced their intent to buy. Now they have to submit it to the FCC to get regulatory approval for the merger.
Inside of that submission is going to be a HUGE list of properties they're going to divest (both on the TMO and ATT side) as part of the merger. Most of these are overlapping area's where one or the other already has superior service and they're going to dump off the overlap to keep it from being a monopoly, among other things.
Most likely the FCC will reject that, and give them some more stuff to divest. They'll counter propose, and it will get approved.
Then they'll actually complete the merger a short time later as far as "we now own TMO", but neither company will change... yet. They will operate completely independent and a "merger rollout" will be planned, and market by market they will bring customers who have not been divested into ATT's system. This doesn't happen at once, but over a period of time.
They will then put up those Divested area's into auction, and companies will buy them and start a similar process to bring those customers (when an area is divested both the network and ALL customers in that market area go with it to the new company) into their systems.
I spent over 5yrs in the cellular industry, and the company I worked for at that point both bought a company and was purchased by another so I've seen it from both sides.
It's a long process.
Hmm true about overseas. I hope it goes faster than a couple years. My house is almost an ATT deadzone. My backyard has 4 bars. When I was with TMO had full bars in my house so looking forward to maybe getting that back. I had not read the full story when I originally posted. I thought it said they had bought TMO not planning to acquire. So yep thats going to be a bit off.
Call me cynical, but I'm almost certain the FCC will just rubber stamp the deal. Possibly with perhaps some token consideration such as allowing the T-Mobile 3G bands to remain online for 3-6 months before they are downed, and all T-Mo phones become EDGE based. The FCC has been rendered essentially toothless when it comes to anything but going after the teenager with the pirate radio station.
They almost always hold up a tiny bit, but it's just a dog and pony show. The list ATT submits to the FCC won't be their "full" list. They want to give up as little property/customers as possible. So they will submit a fair amount, and the FCC will come back and say more, they will submit the true list, and it will get approved.
In both cases with the company I worked for previously that happened when they bought a company, and when they were sold
This is under the idea, though, that it even gets approved. Most likely it will, but it pretty much leaves the GSM network in the US under ATT control so I don't know if that will cause any snags.
What I worry about is whether AT&T will force a data plan on all unlocked iPhones on TMO. Currently I pay my parents and sisters cell phone plan and luckily she doesn't need a data plan because of WiFi access at school 24/7.
That will add an extra $15 to the phone bill...gah I hope they don't.
That will add an extra $15 to the phone bill...gah I hope they don't.
I just hope that since the whole GSM network will be in AT&T's hands, that they stop bothering about locked phones completely. Why? A phone in the US will be going through them if it speaks GSM, so there is no real need.
sometimes these deals dont mean much to the customer, not sure about this one but in Canada Rogers bought Fido, they still operate as 2 companies and the devices are not cross compatible unless unlocked of course
