Yikes! Carlyle just bought the phone company in Hawai'i!

[KamaAina]

Not satire. I'm good, but I'm not THAT good.

http://biz.yahoo.com/rb/040521/telecoms_verizon_1.html

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Private Equity firm Carlyle Group agreed to buy the Hawaiian wireline assets of Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - News) for about $1.65 billion in cash, the No. 1 U.S. telephone company said on Friday....

The agreement includes the equity of Verizon Hawaii Inc., which operates 707,000 local access lines, as well as the services and assets of Verizon's long distance, online and directory publishing businesses there. Last year, those businesses had sales of $610 million and operating income of $58 million....

A new name for the assets will be announced at a later date.

Feel free to suggest one of your own! Goodness knows I have, in the Hawai'i forum at:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=147x140

I have vigorously resisted the cell phone temptation up until now. The thought of tossing $40 a month (really!) into the gaping maw of Carlyle may be enough to push me over the edge...

[KamaAina]

1. Update from Honolulu Star-Bulletin

the Gannett-owned Advertiser's "breaking news" section had nothing on this, but did have a piece about American Idol loser Jasmine Trias!

http://starbulletin.com/breaking/breaking.php?id=2654

Verizon Hawaii, whose possible sale to the Carlyle Group had been speculated for months, is being sold to the global private equity firm for $1.65 billion....

"We will offer new services to our customers, including expanded broadband, and we expect to add many new jobs after the acquisition," Carlyle Managing Director William Kennard said. "Importantly, rates will stay the same as we reposition the business as a true local company."

Last year, Carlyle Group purchased Horizon Lines LLC from CSX Corp. Horizon is the second-largest shipping company in Hawaii, behind Matson Navigation Co.

Let me see if I've got this straight. PNAC front Carlyle owns a good chunk of our shipping capacity, and now our monopoly landline phone company. If the airline industry stays in the tank, they'll soon be able to pick up one of our interisland carriers (Hawaiian or, more likely, privately held Aloha) for a good price.

:scared: :scared: :scared:

[linazelle]

4. Wow, it's nice to see how far our tax dollars go---give yourselves a pat

on the back for financing this buy.

[AntiCoup2K4]

2. Shit.... How long before they buy all of Verizon Wireless??

I do NOT want my cell phone service with the Bush Criminal Empire, for obvious reasons :scared:

[KamaAina]

5. Relax. Verizon Wireless isn't included in the sale.

From the newspaper article above:

The Washington, D.C.-based company, which has more than $18 billion under management, announced today that it has signed a definitive agreement to buy the local phone-service provider from parent company Verizon Communications Inc. The deal, subject to regulatory approval, includes Verizon Hawaii’s local telephone operations, print directory, long-distance operations and Internet service provider business. Verizon Wireless is not included in the transaction.

So youre, um, off the hook, as it were. :-) But where does that leave me? Get a cell phone and use it exclusively? That wouldn't even have worked at my old place, where the buzzer downstairs was rigged to ring my phone!

[MikeG]

3. Can you hear me now. Good.

[symbolman]

6. Hey,

I'm in the Islands too, we should all get together and have a DU TIKI Party!

PM me if you want to meet and figure out what Island everyone is on..

Aloha