Merger not expected to change much

摘要

Sprint and Nextel last month announced plans for a $35 billion merger, but the combination will not cause Nortel's enterprise users to lose the valued push-to-talk capability that has driven the wireless carrier's subscriber growth and customer loyalty, particularly in the government and public-safety sectors. Depicted as a merger of equals, the deal is expected to generate $12 billion in synergies between two wireless carriers that reportedly boast the highest average revenue per user (ARPU) in the wireless industry. The new company, to be known as Sprint Nextel, will have 36 million customers, giving it the kind of scale most analysts believe is necessary to compete effectively against Cingular Wireless and Verizon Wireless, the two largest mobile carriers.