And it won't be the last. By the end of next year, analysts say, the patchwork of regional and local wireless services is likely to be stitched together into about five major national digital networks. Rapid consolidation of the fragmented wireless industry is taking place after a slew of new digital cell phone providers entered the market, slashed prices, and snagged customers from established players. Smaller, cheaper digital phones with more features also attracted new users. Sprint is doing the same, spending heavily to build a national network.
Local carriers lose.
It's a natural evolution of the wireless business for AirTouch to be picked up. And it's also natural for Bell Atlantic to want AirTouch. The two companies, furthermore, have worked closely together for years on many issues, and they jointly own the PrimeCo PCS network. AirTouch would fit nicely with Vodafone, too. Both Vodafone and AirTouch have huge operations in Europe, but they overlap only in Germany.