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To: djane who wrote (6964)	8/28/1999 1:47:00 AM
From: djane	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 29987

USAToday. Bell Atlantic in talks with Vodafone. Link would increase wireless service competition 08/25/99- Updated 11:01 PM ET By Steve Rosenbush and Thor Valdmanis, USA TODAY NEW YORK - Bell Atlantic and Vodafone AirTouch are discussing a possible alliance that would knit their East Coast and West Coast wireless networks into a nationwide system. Such an alliance would let the carriers compete on a national basis with AT&T Wireless, Sprint PCS and Nextel, which offer flat-rate pricing plans. Customers who buy large blocks of airtime could place calls almost anywhere in the country without paying long-distance prices. While a full merger of Bell Atlantic and Vodafone's wireless operations is possible, a limited alliance is far more likely now, people close to the talks say. Bell Atlantic and Vodafone bankers are meeting this week in London to hammer out details, but even a limited agreement appears weeks away. Bell Atlantic and Vodafone declined comment. But a pact would come as no surprise. Vodafone, which outbid Bell Atlantic for AirTouch in January, $56 billion to $45 billion, said at the time that it wanted a deal with Bell Atlantic. The companies had combined wireless revenue of $9 billion last year. They have about 17 million wireless customers. Talks appear to have picked up in recent weeks, after Bell Atlantic and the former AirTouch split assets in a wireless joint venture, PrimeCo Personal Communications. They also ended a noncompetition clause that existed alongside PrimeCo. Yet, there are several obstacles to a full merger. Bell Atlantic is buying GTE, whose mobile wireless operations compete with Vodafone AirTouch in several markets, such as California. The companies would likely be forced by regulators to spin off several assets, complicating any quick deal and making them unload properties that might not be easy to sell. That's why the most likely outcome appears to be a new long-term roaming agreement between Bell Atlantic and Vodafone. It would allow each company's customers to talk at discount prices in markets where the two don't compete. Competitors allow high-volume customers to place calls from almost anywhere for 10 cents to 15 cents a minute. The current roaming agreements between Bell Atlantic and Vodafone AirTouch don't allow such discounts. Bell Atlantic offers only one ultra-high-end, flat-rate nationwide plan: $160 a month for 1,600 minutes. Other customers must pay 50 cents to 99 cents a minute when they "roam" onto another carrier's network. ¸ Copyright 1999 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc.