SBC set to acquire AT&T in $15 billion deal

Ma Bell is history:

Under the terms of the deal announced by the two companies early Monday, AT&T shareholders will receive SBC shares valued at about $15 billion, as well as another $1 billion in the form of a special dividend. SBC Chairman and Chief Executive Edward Whitacre Jr. would remain in his current position, while AT&T Chief Executive David Dorman would become president. AT&T would get three seats on the new company's board, including one for Dorman.

The deal has San Antonio-based SBC, one of the Baby Bells, buying AT&T, the original Mal Bell that was splintered into seven regional telephone companies and a large long-distance company by a landmark 1984 antitrust ruling. The deal likely will face heavy regulatory scrutiny.

That last line is the understatement of the year. This deal will send the Ralph Nader types into a tizzy with accusations that the new SBC will be an unstoppable, monopolistic juggernaut. But the days of "the phone company" -- a monopoly able to excessively control the communications business -- are over. This is a cutthroat business where price is king and features are largely irrelevant. You can get a dial tone, caller ID and voice mail with you-can-hear-a-pin-drop clarity anywhere. Emerging technologies will transmit more and more phone calls over the Internet, cutting costs further. It'll be a tough road for communications companies, but as usual, competition will lead to innovation and lower prices for consumers.