AT&T to Offer Wireless Services ; Sprint Deal Allows Reentry into Market
Posted on: Wednesday, 19 May 2004, 06:00 CDT
NEW YORK - AT&T Corp. has reached an agreement with one of its biggest rivals, Sprint Corp., to offer cellphone service over Sprint's wireless network, the companies announced Tuesday.
The five-year deal will allow Bedminster-based AT&T to reenter the wireless business and pitch another service to its 30 million customers.
The nation's biggest long-distance telephone company got out of the wireless business when it spun off AT&T Wireless Services Inc. as a separate company in 2001.
AT&T will resume offering wireless services after Cingular Wireless closes its $41 billion deal to buy AT&T Wireless; that is expected to close this fall. The Cingular purchase freed AT&T to use the AT&T Wireless name. That may be a marketing challenge: AT&T Wireless led in consumer complaints last year, says Consumers Union. Sprint was No. 2.
AT&T's reentry into the wireless business is likely to drive rates lower. The company, which is already testing wireless services in select U.S. markets, said it hopes for a launch later this year.
AT&T Chairman and CEO David W. Dorman said AT&T plans to add the wireless service to its AT&T OneRate local and long-distance plans and its CallVantage Voice over Internet Protocol service.
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