The Federal Communications Commission on Friday, May 21 approved the proposed acquisition of Verizon Communications’ local wireline operations in 14 states by Frontier Communications Corp. The U.S. Department of Justice, the Federal Trade Commission and all states requiring regulatory review previously cleared the transaction. Verizon announced the divestiture of its residential and small-business access lines in Arizona, California, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Washington, Wisconsin and West Virginia on May 13, 2009.
“We’re pleased the commission approved this transaction and found it to be in the public interest. This transaction will benefit consumers by enabling Frontier to strengthen its position as a premier broadband and communications provider focused on rural and small- to medium-sized cities. It also will allow Verizon to accelerate its focus on wireless, broadband and global IP networks for its customers.”, said Kathleen Grillo, Verizon senior vice president of federal regulatory affairs
