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On April 5, SBC Communications (nyse: SBC) and Bell South (nyse: BLS) said they will merge their wireless assets to form a new wireless services company, creating the second-largest wireless network in the U.S. with 16.2 million subscribers. The SBC and BellSouth network will be able to sell services to 70% of the U.S., including customers in 40 of the top 50 U.S. markets.

Earlier in the week, Bell Atlantic (nyse: BEL), GTE (nyse: GTE) and Vodafone (nyse: VOD) said they planned an initial public offering of Verizon Wireless, the new name given to the joint venture for the nation's top wireless provider with 24 million subscribers.

"In the wireless business it's all about scope and national footprint so you can deliver economical services to your customers," says Guy Woodlief, analyst at Prudential, referring to the BellSouth-SBC venture. "That's what this deal is all about."

The company, with annual revenue estimated at $10.2 billion and a market value of $60 billion to $70 billion, is supposed to issue its own stock.

Of course consolidation will help SBC and BellSouth keep their own operating costs down. For consumers, the new company could mean low prices and new services, such as flat-rate pricing for national cellular phone service.

"They get a larger footprint and they're supposed to pass better value to you," says Rex Mitchell, telecom analyst at Banc of America Securities. "They could buy other players assuming they want to pursue a national footprint," he says.

Investors will have no shortage of places to spend their money. If it's not SBC-Bell South or Verizon, there's always AT&T (nyse: T), which plans a tracking stock for its wireless unit.

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