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Alltel has just added another improvement to their MyCircle calling plans. Now, in addition to voice minutes, they will have the option to include text, video or picture messaging. Current MyCircle customers will be able to send or receive unlimited messages to anyone in their Circle as well as other Alltel customers with the addition of a “My Circle message pack” which starts as low as $7.99 a month.

In addition, for those looking to send messages to friends outside of their circle or to non-Alltel customers the new messaging options include either 400 or 1000 messages and are priced at $7.99 and $12.99 a month respectively. Users looking for an unlimited messaging plan will still have the option to get the All Access Pass which costs $19.99 and allows for unlimited messaging to anyone.

Keep reading to check out the full press release.

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Alltel has been working with Wi-Fi leader, Boingo, to bring unlimited Wi-Fi access to more than 25,000 hotspot locations. This service is available to both Alltel customers as well as non-Alltel users. In addition, Alltel is also offering their Internet Anywhere Bundle - more on that later.

Now, for $19.99 a month, or even $3.99 a day, you can get access to Alltel’s Wi-Fi in hotspots, which includes hotels, bookstores, restaurants, airports, and coffee shops. The neat thing about this is that you are not tied down to any contract, so if you wish to stop using it, you can easily opt out. Alltel is already offering this service in nearly 100 popular airports. So if you are waiting to catch a plane, you can get some work done using their Wi-Fi. Over the past year, Alltel has added nearly 15,000 Wi-Fi hotspots, so as time goes on, they will probably add even more to their already 25,000 hotspots in total.

Back to the “Internet Anywhere Bundle”, basically that gives you the option to use Alltel’s EVDO network or access to a Wi-Fi hotspot, and that costs $69.98 a month.

Angela Rittgers, Director of Product Marketing, had this to say about the new partnership and deals they have to offer;

“The Internet Anywhere Bundle is a common-sense approach to network connectivity and will enhance the choices available for our customers. Alltel, together with Boingo Wireless, is pleased to offer the flexibility of Wi-Fi to stay in touch with families and friends or access work email and schedules through a reliable connection.”

Read [Alltel] Via [Press Release]

Alltel has just announced that they are continuing to update their Rev. A network and have plans to offer it in 18-market within the next six months. The new markets will include, but not be limited to Little Rock, Charlotte, New Orleans, Phoenix, Tampa and cover both rural and urban markets.

The Rev. A network will give users upload speeds in the range of 500-800 Kbps with bursts up to 1.8 Mbps and download speeds of 600 Kbps to 1.4 Mbps, with bursts up to 3.1 Mbps. These speeds of course are dependent on having a device that is compatible with the Rev. A network and currently include the Huawei EC228 USB and the UTStarcom UM 150 laptop cards and the HTC Touch or HTC PPC6800 phones. However those HTC users will need a free download from the HTC website in order to get those speeds.

In addition to the Rev. A upgrades, Alltel is also continuing work on their existing EVDO network. They are estimating that as of now they have 76-percent of their users covered and hope to bring that up to about 82-percent by years end.

Read [Alltel]

Verizon Wireless has announced that it will soon be coming out with a new plan designed for small business customers that will give them unlimited calling features to five numbers of their choosing, which would cost them $5 per line. If this new plan seems a little familiar to you, chances are you have been using it before in the guise of Alltel’s MyCircle Plan.

For those who may have forgotten, Verizon has recently acquired Alltel for $30 billion. With such an investment, it’s no wonder that Verizon is not wanting to waste any time in taking full advantage of what Alltel has to offer.

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Palm has released a new, albeit small firmware update for Alltel Treo 755p users. The new update brings the firmware from version 1.02 to 1.03, which will be reflected as software version “Treo755p-1.03-CDMA” on your phone’s info screen. The update does not offer anything overly exciting, but is still recommended as it does correct a “reset issue that occurs under certain specific and rare conditions.” As always when updating your device, please take some proper precautions and make sure you are backed up first, and of course follow the directions offered from Palm closely.

Read [Update] Via [SlashPhone]

Just when rumors were beginning to circulate that Verizon is planning to acquire Alltel, comes the official announcement that both companies have already reached an agreement. And surely the acquisition numbers involve a big sum of money, totaling to an aggregate transaction value of $28.1 billion which includes Alltel’s equity of approximately $5.9 billion and a projected net debt of $22.2 billion at closing.

So, what does this mean for customers of both companies once the transaction is completed by the end of the year? The range of products and services that customers of both companies have access to will expand to include basic and advanced devices and expanded IN network calling community. Additionally, Alltel customers will have access to advanced services from Verizon that include over-the-air downloadable music from Verizon’s three million song library plus a nationwide network that can provide coast-to-coast experience for customers and industry-leading consumer policies such as Test Drive and Worry Free Guarantees. All of which are being provided by Verizon to its existing customers.

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Alltel, normally perceived to be at the back of the nationwide carriers pack, posted record customer growth in Q1, adding more than 1 million customers for the second consecutive quarter (up 26% from last year), now totaling over 13 million subscribers.

President and CEO Scott Ford said, “We are pleased with our results across the board, and I am extremely proud of our team for staying focused in our first full quarter under new ownership.  We are off to a strong start for the year, with consolidated EBITDA up 18 percent year-over-year.”

Revenues rose to $2.3 billion, an 11% growth from last year.  However, the company reported a net loss of $125 million, due primarily to significant increases in interest costs and depreciation and amortization expense following the completion of the merger with an affiliate of TPG Capital and GS Capital Partners in November 2007.  The company has ceased trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

The company’s consolidated EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) was at $847 million, 18% higher than previous year.

Via [electronista]

Alltel has just added a new colored version of the HTC Touch to its lineup, the new shade is burgundy and it is currently available. Aside from the new color, the features and pricing both remain the same as the original gray coloring. The Touch offers TouchFLO, a 2-megapixel camera, Bluetooth and runs on Windows Mobile 6.0 Professional, it was also recently updated to add Rev. A EVDO support. The burgundy, or original gray Touch will set you back $129.99, which comes after a mix of instant and mail-in-rebates along with a 2-year agreement.

Product [Alltel]

For those owners of the HTC Touch on Alltel who’s been just dying for the Rev. A EVDO update (and I mean, come on, who hasn’t?), your day has finally come. The already sleek Touch now has Rev. A EVDO capabilities for your browsing please. Rev. A introduces lower latency and higher upload speeds, along with a minor bump in download speeds. This makes applications like Skype or other VoIP/time-critical applications more feasible. The update also contains patches for Bluetooth connectivity issues in some wireless headsets and pairing with devices. Word of warning though: If you attempt to use this update on a non-Alltel Touch, you will brick your phone.

Via [IntoMobile]

Alltel, thanks to the two-year anniversary of MyCircle is giving a little something back to the loyal and long-term customers. Sadly all of the customers will not be getting the goods, as this offer applies only to users who are on the MyCircle 10 or MyCircle 20 plan. Those lucky customers who are celebrating two years with MyCircle will be getting an additional number for free, giving a total of 11 or 21 numbers they can call without worrying about minutes.

Moving forward, Alltel is also planning on offering the additional free number for every two-year anniversary, so current customers who missed out still have something to look forward to. Qualifying customers can add their addition number by visiting http://www.alltel.com/myaccount. Personally two-years is a long time, plus don’t we have birthdays every year, how about an additional number every year, of course I guess we shouldn’t complain for getting something for free.

Read [Alltel]