Verizon Wireless has asked US regulator, the FCC, for a sixty-day extension to divest the US$3 billion in mobile assets it was ordered to spin-off as part of its acquisition of Alltel that closed in January this year. The assets span 105 markets (including around 2.1 million former Alltel subscribers across 22 states) and are to be sold in an effort to ease antitrust concerns from the US$28.1 billion deal between the country’s now largest mobile operator and the regional operator. In a filing, Verizon said it needs more time to handle the transfer of the assets to prospective buyers. The existing deadline is 9 May, but Verizon has asked for an extension to 8 July.

Verizon says it has “signed nondisclosure agreements with over 70 prospective buyers and answered hundreds of due diligence questions posed by the bidders.” However, it says that although it requested that bids be submitted by the end of March, “some of the leading bids were contingent on additional due diligence and data requests” and “it will not be able to complete the process and submit the requisite applications by the end of the 120-day period specified in the Verizon Wireless/Alltel Order.” Verizon adds that “although the company has diligently managed the divestiture process, the sheer size and complexity of the divestitures coupled with the current economic conditions have forced bidders to conduct far more due diligence than usual,” making it “impossible” to complete the process within the initial 120-day period. Various companies are rumoured to have submitted bids for the assets, including rival operator AT&T, private-equity firms Blackstone, Carlyle Group, Kohlberg Kravis & Roberts & Co and Providence Equity Partners, as well as at least one US cable provider.