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Verizon Raising Anti-Trust Eyebrows as Investigation Over Spectrum Purchases Reportedly Underway

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According to Bloomberg, a rep of the Justice Department’s shared that they have launched an investigation into Verizon’s recent purchasing of spectrum, namely the $3.6 billion deal struck up between them and the coalition of Bright House, Time Warner and Comcast.

That alongside another deal with Cox Communications has them worried that Verizon may soon have too much control over the airwaves. Verizon says they have no received word that an investigation is being launched but we wouldn’t be surprised if Bloomberg’s story holds substance. Ruling the air the way they want may not come so easy.

Quentyn Kennemer
The "Google Phone" sounded too awesome to pass up, so I bought a G1. The rest is history. And yes, I know my name isn't Wilson.

Sony Ericsson Gives Timeline for ICS Updates, Rollouts Start Late March 2012

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29 Comments

  1. verizon is trying to be a monopoly lol, they know they have everyone and they keep jackin their prices and buying more things because they know they are the best and that noone will leave because they know they have the best coverage in the nation

    1. Unfortunately, that’s the only reason I stay with them.  They have the best phone line up along with the best network coverage in my area.  It’s either Verizon with 3G or U.S. Cellular with 3G and I hate U.S. Cellular. Their phone lineup sucks.  

    2. consumers won’t stay with a company that keeps raising prices when there are viable alternatives.
      There are many alternatives to Verizon.

    3. Do you work for Verizon or something?  If they have “everyone”, why were they so scared about ATT acquiring T-Mo?  No one will leave them?  Seriously?  I have heard from MANY disgruntled people who have left them, or would if they weren’t locked in by other factors.  They are as over-hyped as Apple, when it comes to deluded “fanboys” selling their products for them.  They’re the best, because their commercials say so, so it must be true.  Strange that the US government didn’t step in and block V from THEIR acquisitions in the last couple of years that made their already enormous company even bigger.

      1. “Their the best, because their commercials say so, so it must be true.”

        They’re, not their.

        1. Dang, you are fast!  I corrected that within 30 seconds of posting it!  :)

      2. No i dont work for verizon just going by what i see around me in my area, and it has nothing to do with commercials, its complaints i’ve heard from many other verizon users such as myself.

        1. Then, I must have completely misunderstood your original post. I got the impression that you were on the “bandwagon”, but obviously, not the case.

          1. Def not on any band wagons accept the android one of course since day 1 ;)

          2. Me, also, but I’ve only been on this one for about 7 weeks, now!  I am amazed at how much I like the android system and how good my Atrix 2 hardware is.  (Coming from webOS, though, I guess ANYTHING would be an improvement in both hardware and apps!)

          3. I dont see a reply link to your most recent comment probably ran out of room on page, but i wanted to just say that its better than webos however not EVERYTHING is better than webos like iOS stinks! android 4 life!

          4. The ONE thing I do miss about webOS is the ability to get rid of a running app by just flicking it away.  With android, I am never sure if that app is still running in the background.

      3. I have coverage with verizon when others don’t have coverage with their phones. Being able to use my phone almost anywhere is enough to keep my happy and with verizon.

        1. Exactly.  I am on the other side of that, where I happen to have great ATT service, but the others in my area, not so much.  Everyone has to use what works for themselves.  I get all wound up when people tell me how stupid it is for me to be  on ATT, or whatever!

        2. Where i live a small town of 2000 people. Att is the only reliable provider. My friends with verzion have horible reception and usually end up switching to att cuz they cant make phone calls. Sprint is better you can actually make calls but forget about using data. My att data is actually faster then my dsl which is 3 Mbps down and the fastest plan i can buy in my area. no cable service available. My phone has reached 8 Mbps and averages 5Mps 

      4. I just want to correct you on something. Verizon was actually one of the only carriers that supported the merger of Att and TMO. As a matter of fact Verizon was quoted as saying “we don’t care about being the largest network, just the most profitable”

        1. I really didn’t get that vibe in listening to news reports, but you may be correct, here.  They made it seem that neither of the other two big players was in favor of it.  Thanks for the update!

      5. @TimmyB44 to the best of my knowledge Verizon was publicly in support of the merger. 

        My theory why they were in favor. Get rid of value carrier T-Mobile, then Verizon and At&t could secretly engage in price fixing forming a duopoly. (In my opinion they already do engage in price fixing).

        Mark my words. In 10 years we are going to be reading on Phandroid about an investigation into the cell phone industry about price fixing practices by the carriers of the 90’s and 00’s.

  2. While everyone was concentrating on the AT&T/T-Mobile merger, VZW went under the radar. Smart move, sneaky bastards.

  3. So what’s keeping other companies from doing the same thing? Its not like VZW is choking out the competition. There are 3 other major providers and tons of regional providers. Not to mention tons of pre-paid no contract offerings.

    1. Then you don’t understand how it works.  It’s a long term game of attrition.

      The At&t tmobile takeover attempt was a bit of an overreach but don’t think for a second that it’s over.

      1. Even though AT&T announced yesterday that they were giving up on the merger and finally putting the entire thing behind them?

        1. Urrrum….yea……like the 1.3Billion purchase of Qualcomm spectrum announced today.  

  4. Yes! Do your job DOJ! If you were going to question the AT&T&T-Mobile merger, then the Verizon buyout of spectrum should receive the same scrutiny!

  5. As much as I dislike Verizons current prices (which is why my entire plan is grandfathered from back in 2001) and some of their business practices, where I live their service is insane and the whole city is apparently already covered in LTE, so I can’t really complain that much.

  6. I see a lot of comments about Verizon raising there prices….that’s a laugh as prices have never been lower. Yes, Verizon invests billions of dollars in their network to provide the best service/ coverage. What’s stopping other carriers from doing the same, nothing. Go Verizon, expand and rule the air. I don’t want to wait a decade for what you you can do in a couple years. If I had any other carrier I’d still be waiting for LTE, and many places still don’t have 3G with Att, sprint, & tmobile.

    1. You are an idiot in more ways than one

    2. I don’t know that they’ve raised their prices recently, they’ve been on the high side for quite a while, primarily because they nickel and dime you to death.

      If you want to connect to a secure corporate email/calender server like BES or Good for enterprise they charge you an additional $15 on top of the phone, data and texting charges.

      I’m jealous of their network but sticking with sprint saves me better then $300 on a 2 year contract, the phones are cheaper and I have unlimited data.

    3. I actually agree with you. Their prices aren’t the cheapest, and it would be nice to see some options for those who want a phone with the build quality of a smart phone, but not the high monthly cost. That said, at least they’re aggressively building and expanding their network. Their coverage is better than most of the competition, and while AT&T might match their coverage, they certainly can’t match Verizon’s 4G network. I think I made the right move, going to Verizon a few years ago, and as long as they keep building their spectrum, I intend to stay.

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