How will AT&T buyout of T-Mobile affect service delivery in the US?
The recent news about the giant AT&T swallowing up its smaller rival T-Mobile came as surprise to many people. If the regulator approves the deal, AT&T will amass an incredible 130 million subscribers, far more than its nearest rival Verizon Wireless with 94 million customers. Analysts believe that this may cause Verizon to consider acquisitions of its own, which may include Sprint Nextel Corp who are currently number three in the market.
Such a movement could spell bad news for users. With less competition in the market there will be fewer choices for customers and it could lead to higher mobile service rates. As a business SMS service provider, this is clearly a concern to us. Interestingly, AT&T has responded by saying that they believe the deal will lead to greater competition and lower prices. It’s difficult to see how this could be true and even if it was, you would have to question why they would enter into a deal that would result in greater competition for them.
In their defense AT&T cite a government study that reported over the last decade, the average bill for a cellphone had dropped. And this was during a time which saw a number of large telecom mergers.
The winners in this deal are likely to be T-Mobile customers, who may possibly get access to the iPhone. However T-Mobile has always portrayed itself as a low-cost alternative to it competitors and it is hard to see how this will fit with AT&T’s image of the providing highest quality service.
