Complete GTE, Bell Atlantic merger on the 'Verizon'

Palouse residents will not experience drastic changes in telephone service following the recent merger of GTE and Bell Atlantic to form Verizon Communications.

"It will be business as usual for us and customers in the short term," said Bob Wayt, public affairs manager based out of the Portland area.

The merger of the two companies to form Verizon, (rhymes with horizon), was approved by the Federal Communications Commission on June 16.

"Other than the name change and the (telephone) bill looking a little different, customers aren't going to notice much in the way of the merger," Wayt said. "We want this to be transparent to our customers. We want them to rest assured we will continue to operate as we have for decades and will continue to provide the same quality and maintain the same local work force."

Wayt, formerly employed with GTE, said there are no rate changes scheduled. If there were, the company would inform customers before any proposed changes were brought before the Public Utilities Commission for approval. Customers would be given the chance to comment on the proposal.

Employment will remain the same at this time, he said. The approximately 100 employees who worked for GTE in the Moscow-Pullman area, will continue their employment with Verizon.

There will be no interruption in telephone service.

The Phone Mart on Main Street in Moscow will remain open. Information and service telephone numbers are the same.

A major advertising campaign is scheduled to begin in August. Customers should begin to receive more information about the company at that time.

The New York-based Verizon now has 95 million access lines and 25 million wireless customers. It is a Fortune 10 company with more than 260,000 employees and approximately $60 billion in 1999 revenues. Prior to the merger, GTE had approximately 100,000 employees.

Verizon named David Magnant as president of Verizon's Northwest region. Magnant, formerly the director of construction for Bell Atlantic, will be based out of Everett, Wash. He is responsible for the day-to-day network operations -- installation, repair, construction and customer service -- in Washington, Idaho, Oregon and Northern California.

Timothy J. McCallion was named the Pacific regional president, which is a new position. McCallion is the former vice president for the regulatory and governmental affairs division of GTE Service Corp.

He is based out of Thousand Oaks, Calif. McCallion is responsible for regulatory, legislative and government affairs, economic development and community relations for Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.

Wayt said in the long term, customers will benefit from the merger.

The larger company will have more resources to keep up with a changing technology, he said. They will offer one-stop shopping for local, cellular and Internet phone services. The combined resources will mean more advanced voice, wireless and data services.

"Ultimately, what it's all about is making life better for our customers," he said.

He said the opportunity for growth fueled the merger.

"You take two successful companies, pool the resources and make them an even greater competitor in the new world of telecommunication," he said. "GTE would have been an OK operation by itself, but with Bell Atlantic we can be more successful. We can be a top-level player."

For more information on Verizon, visit .