Like many lucky prospects in the MLB draft, the value of Alaska Communications Systems Group, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:ALSK) micro cap stock rose during trading on Tuesday morning, as the company announced news of a merger that will consolidate the Alaskan mobile network.
Telecompaper reported that GCI and Alaska Communications announced the finalization of plans to merge their networks in order to increase their offerings across the northernmost state in the U.S.
A release from Alaska Communications noted that the two companies will contribute their respective wireless assets to the Alaska Wireless Network, and GCI will purchase $100 million from the firm as part of the deal.
"GCI and Alaska Communications are pleased to reach these agreements," said Alaska Communications president and CEO Anand Vadapalli and GCI president and CEO Ron Duncan. "The wireless business is capital intensive, requires scale to compete successfully against national carriers, and demands more spectrum than either company individually owns."
The value of shares for Alaska Communications increased $0.20 to $2.08 at 11:53 a.m. on June 5, a rise of 10.6 percent.
