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Ex-Alltel Employees Given Pink Slip by Verizon

Michael Kwan — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 13:36:02 +0000

Well, there’s some good news and some bad news here for all the Alltel employees in the audience. As you may recall, Verizon Wireless went ahead and purchased Alltel some time back, leaving us to wonder what would become of all the existing Alltel employees and infrastructure. Not surprisingly, there is some definite redundancy across the Verizon and Alltel brands.

From what I can gather, the two brands will continue to operate semi-independently, but a number of redundant jobs are being removed. More specifically, the Alltel office in Little Rock is getting some major slashing. Verizon has cut an unspecified number of corporate positions at that office.

The Alltel people getting the pink slip would be coming from departments like finance, legal, and marketing. This is becuase Verizon already has their own people doing that kind of thing. So, what becomes of these poor laid off (fired?) individuals?

All is not lost. It’s not like Verizon is going to boot these people onto the street without a place to go. Instead, Verizon is offering them entry-level positions in the call center. Right, because handling all the legal things for Alltel pays exactly the same as listening to Verizon customer complaints, right?

More importantly, what will become of poor Chad?

Source: BGR

BlackBerry Tour Arrives at Alltel Wireless

Michael Kwan — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 20:21:44 +0000

Alltel customers in the market for a new smartphone should probably listen up, because it doesn’t seem like you guys will be getting an Android phone or an iPhone any time soon. Fret not, however, because you’re getting a hot new RIM option in the form of the BlackBerry Tour 9630. This is no consolation prize!

You may already be familiar with the BlackBerry Tour, as it is available through a few other carriers (like Verizon), but it’s nice to see that the Alltel crew can get their new BlackBerry fix as well. This is the newest of the CDMA ‘Berry devices from RIM, so you get all of the latest features too.

Among the more notable features are the backlit QWERTY keyboard, world phone capabilities, enhanced multimedia functions, 3.2 megapixel camera, GPS with BlackBerry Maps, 3G connectivity, HVGA (480×360) 65k color display, Bluetooth 2.0, and a 0.6″ profile.

The BlackBerry Tour can be found through your favorite Alltel retailer (and online) for $199 on just a one-year contract. Yes, a one-year contract. You will have to deal with a $100 mail-in rebate, but that’s better than signing a two-year contract. To get that price, however, you need to select a Smart Choice plan and those start at $69.99.

Source: BGR

Alltel and Verizon Confirm BlackBerry Tour 9630

Michael Kwan — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 20:39:12 +0000

Listen up, CDMA fans, because you’ve got yourself quite the hot smartphone coming down your chute. We’ve been pining over the release of the BlackBerry Tour 9630 since the days we were calling it the Niagara, so it’s good to see that the new ‘Berry is finally going to see the official light of official day.

Let’s start with Alltel Wireless, since they seem to be the wireless carrier getting the short end of the stick a lot of the time when it comes to new phones. Well, Chad and his buddies can have the BlackBerry 9630 Tour too. There’s no mention of date, but a $199.99 with contract price sounds likely.

On the Verizon Wireless side of the equation, it seems that an official announcement and launch page have been erected to welcome the BlackBerry Tour. According to this page, VZW will start selling the new phone on July 12th at a $199.99 with 2-year contract price point. They also remind you that Verizon is America’s largest and most reliable 3G network. Is that a shot at AT&T?

The interesting thing is that Verizon is giving a good option for the corporate enterprise market, since the Tour 9630 will be made available with an optional camera. If you work some place where cameraphones are a no-no, that’s a definite plus.

Sources: MobileCrunch and IntoMobile