T-Mobile said Tuesday it will acquire U.S. Cellular in a deal worth $4.4 billion. It plans to use the wireless company to improve coverage in rural areas.
So, AT&T, the Deutsche tel / pacNWBell fka AT&T Frankenstein, and Bell Atlantic fka AT&T
They're all AT&T except for the part of Pac NW Bell AT&T that got bought by, essentially, German AT&T.
I want to believe they don't collude and perform, but I've lived in Canada and seen the decades-long dance between Rogers(fka Shaw fka AGTel + BCTel) and Rogers(Rogers) before they became just Rogers.
And now I'm sure that was all founded on a sugar empire.
But our major players have been dancing around each other for a long time before one bought the other -- and I'm sure it's just to save on Green Fees at the club because it's not one corporate rate.
In 2, there's generally no difference whether they go under or not. If they had anything valuable when they went under, it's absorbed by a competitor. Machines, labor, etc.
The challenge is the startup costs and retaining skilled help. The only folks with the resources to cover these costs do so with the expectation of selling the company for more money, a long term investment for the investor. Gathering these resources without the expectation of selling or being the one buying others is probably untried and hugely difficult.