Department of Justice has approved Alltel Divestiture to AT&T

According to a reliable source, the Department of Justice (DoJ) has approved the divestiture of Alltel markets to AT&T, following last weeks approval of the Atlantic Tele-Network divestiture markets. Both transactions are still pending FCC approval before they can close. This means we're getting close to having AT&T service in Montana, the Dakotas, and other former Alltel markets! Even after closing, AT&T still has to do some work for a network transition here though... they use a different network technology from Alltel. This has been one of the longest, most absurdly irrational political fights over a license transfer I have ever seen, and certainly the longest I can recall for a divestiture that has been ordered by the FCC and Department of Justice! If this is a sign of how things are going to work in the "new" FCC, it's just sad. It should have been simple enough - you ordered a divestiture to maintain competition, you sold to companies with no market presence in the divested markets, that preserves an additional competitor, end of story.