By: Two of the three telecom giants created by recent mergers trace their lineage to Ma Bell, the third to some of her early long-distance and wireless challengers. But even as the phone companies consolidate, they face new competitive threats from Voice-over-IP upstarts like Vonage and Skype, technology players such as IBM and Microsoft, and cable companies like Comcast and Time-Warner.
Lead Story: Telecom Merged and Converged: The victory of the supercarriers and the transformation of American networking
History of AssimilationTwelve major carriers shrink to just three.
Deregulation Pays Off The regulatory picture still looks good - for customers. Tiny Chips and Lizard Brains As tech gets smarter, so must the networks that may eventually connect billions of devices.
