[July 29, 2005]

Western Wireless Shareholders Approve Merger with Alltel

BELLEVUE, Wash. --(Business Wire)-- July 29, 2005 -- Western Wireless Corporation (NASDAQ: WWCA) today announced that it has received approval from its shareholders for the proposed merger with Alltel (NYSE: AT). As previously announced by Alltel, all regulatory approvals have been obtained. With approval from the Western Wireless Corporation shareholders and the expected completion of the merger filings today, the effective date of the merger is expected to be August 1, 2005.

"July 29th holds special meaning in the history of Western Wireless and we are very excited with today's overwhelming approval of the merger by our shareholders," said John W. Stanton, chairman and chief executive officer of Western Wireless. "By combining with Alltel, we create a large rural operator using multiple technologies with the largest footprint in the country. As the wireless industry continues to transform, we felt that combining with Alltel was in the best interests of our shareholders, customers and employees."

"Western was founded by a group of experienced entrepreneurs that built three businesses, Western Wireless's domestic and international businesses, and VoiceStream (now T-Mobile), which was sold to Deutsche Telekom in 2001." Stanton concluded, "I want to thank our original private equity sponsors including Providence Equity, Hellman and Friedman and Goldman Sachs, our 3.5 million customers and most of all, our team of over 4000 employees for their years of commitment and dedication."

About Western Wireless Corporation

Western Wireless Corporation, headquartered in Bellevue, Washington, serves over 1.4 million subscribers in 19 western states under the Cellular One(R) and Western Wireless(R) brand names. Western Wireless, through its subsidiary, Western Wireless International Corporation, currently serves over 1.8 million customers in six international markets, and own a minority interest in a seventh market.

This press release may contain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the Company's plans, intentions and expectations. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates of management at the time the statements are made. Such statements are inherently subject to a variety of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expected or implied by the forward-looking statements. These factors include general economic and business conditions nationally, internationally and in the regions and countries in which we operate; demographic changes; technology changes; increased competition; changes in business strategy or development plans; whether the pending merger with ALLTEL will be completed and the effects on the Company in the event it is not completed; our high leverage and our ability to access capital markets; our ability to attract and retain qualified personnel; existing governmental regulations and changes in, or the failure to comply with, governmental regulations; our ability and the cost of acquiring additional spectrum licenses; and product liability and other claims asserted against us. A more extensive discussion of the risk factors that could impact these areas and the Company's overall business and financial performance can be found in the Company's public offering prospectuses and its reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Given these factors, investors and analysts should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]

Discussions: