Verizon, Alltel get antitrust approval to merge

Verizon Wireless won antitrust approval to purchase rural wireless provider Alltel Corp on the condition that it divest assets in 22 states, the Justice Department said on Thursday. The deal still needs approval from the Federal Communications Commission which is expected to approve the combination at a Nov. 4 meeting. The divestitures required by the Justice Department cover all of North Dakota and South Dakota; large portions of Colorado, Georgia, Kansas, Montana, South Carolina, Utah and Wyoming; and parts of Alabama, Arizona, California, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio and Virginia.