It seems like it was just yesterday, but one year has passed since AT&T and Verizon agreed to a $2.35 billion deal which would provide the former with select assets in 18 states and covering 1.5 million subscribers. Unfortunately for the two, the FCC had a lot on its plate at the time the deal was struck and the sale has been stuck in a regulatory holding pattern ever since. Now it finally looks like the FCC may be ready to approve the deal, as FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski sent an order asking that the acquisition be approved in a vote that could come in the next few weeks. Whether or not the other voting members of the commission will heed the Chairman’s advice remains to be seen, but if they do vote in favor of the deal it means good news for those divested locales who have been waiting anxiously for AT&T to roll in with its stellar 3G coverage.
