AT&T buys Convergys wireless stakes for $320M

AT&T Mobility (NYSE:T) said it will buy out the minority stakes Convergys Corp. holds in two Cincinnati-area wireless ventures for $320 million in cash.

When Convergys--which provides rating, billing and other services to carriers--was spun off from Cincinnati Bell in 1998, it received a 34 percent interest in Cincinnati SMSA and a 45 percent stake in Cincinnati SMSA Tower Holdings. AT&T holds the rest of the ventures and manages them on a day-to-day basis.

The sale is expected to generate after-tax profits for Convergys of $250 million, and the deal is expected to close in early July. Since AT&T is acquiring the remaining minority interests in partnerships it already controls, no regulatory approvals are needed.

The deal is the latest example of AT&T scooping up wireless assets. AT&T is working to acquire Qualcomm's (NASDAQ:QCOM) 700 MHz licenses for $1.93 billion and T-Mobile USA for $39 billion.

For more:
- see this release
- see this Dow Jones Newswires article (sub. req.)

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