Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Verizon Wireless may buy more radio spectrum, Strigl says

From: [email-masked]
Date: Wed, 10 Sep 2003 02:14:55 -0400

Wednesday, September 10, 2003
Verizon Wireless may buy more radio spectrum, Strigl says
By Tom Giles / Bloomberg News

Verizon Wireless, the biggest U.S. mobile-telephone company, wants to buy more
government licenses to use airwaves for sending calls and data, Chief Executive
Officer Dennis Strigl said. The carrier, based in Bedminster, New Jersey, has
expressed interest in licenses held by bankrupt NextWave Telecom Inc., which has
agreed to sell some of its spectrum to Cingular Wireless LLC for $1.4 billion.
Under bankruptcy rules, other bidders can make offers for the licenses.

"We're always looking to strengthen our spectrum position," Strigl said at an
investor conference in Boston that was broadcast over the Internet. "We will only
acquire new spectrum at the right price." He didn't elaborate.
Verizon Wireless wants more network capacity so customers can transmit more text
messages, e-mails and photos, services that generate higher revenue than voice
calls. Subscribers pay $79.99 a month, in addition to fees for mobile-phone use,
for unlimited Internet access.

The wireless licenses NextWave intends to sell to Cingular cover 83 million
potential customers in 34 markets.  Cingular Chief Executive Stan Sigman said in
an interview in Washington that he's received "no indication" other companies are
trying to outbid him.

Verizon Wireless, owned by Verizon Communications Inc. and Vodafone Group Plc, is
holding to a forecast for adding more than 4 million new subscribers this year,
Strigl said.  The carrier also may spend $4.4 billion to $4.7 billion next year on
equipment for expanding its network, "in about the same range" as in 2003, he
said.

The company also plans to introduce a mobile phone made by Nokia Oyj in the coming
months, Strigl said.  Verizon Wireless last month started selling a product that
functions both as a walkie-talkie and a mobile phone as the company tries to win
customers from Nextel Communications Inc., a smaller carrier whose customers pay
higher average monthly bills than Verizon's.  "Early success shows that our
competitors customers are not happy," Strigl said. Verizon Wireless is "very
confident" it will win business from existing sellers of push-to-talk service, he
said, without naming competitors.
Nextel Partners Inc., 32 percent owned by Reston, Virginia- based Nextel, also
sells a device that combines walkie-talkie and mobile-phone service.

Shares of New York-based Verizon Communications, the largest U.S. local-phone
company, fell 58 cents to $35.21 at 3:30 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite
trading.  Cingular is a venture of San Antonio-based SBC Communications Inc. and
BellSouth Corp. of Atlanta, the second and third-largest U.S. regional-phone
companies. Shares of SBC fell 18 cents to $22.95 at 3:30 p.m. in NYSE composite
trading. BellSouth fell 46 cents to $25.42.

http://www.detnews.com/2003/technology/0309/10/technology-267124.htm

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