FCC Says AT&T Can Buy Verizon Wireless Licenses

The Federal Communications Commission approved AT&T's $2.35 billion purchase of wireless licenses from Verizon Wireless.

The FCC said the transaction didn't raise competitive concerns and that the voluntary conditions proposed by AT&T were "likely to result in transaction-specific public interest benefits." FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski circulated an order in early June to approve the deal and the agency's five commissioners unanimously approved the deal this week. The agency's approval of the license transfer was expected although the agency's review of the deal took almost a year, frustrating some AT&T executives.

Only FCC Commissioner Michael Copps released a statement. He opposed Verizon's purchase of Alltel which triggered the sale of the licenses. "The Order we adopt now takes an important step to help restore at least some level of competitive balance through the implementation of Verizon Wireless' divestiture of certain licenses and associated businesses, as required by the Department of Justice, to AT&T," said Commissioner Copps. "Absent these divestitures, consumers in large parts of the country would have inevitably experienced less competition, higher prices and lower quality of service."