I spent the last few days at the CTIA Wireless show in Orlando, and the big news at the show wasn’t big news from the show. It was, of course, the proposed merger of AT&T and T-Mobile US. Everyone at the conference seemed to still be processing it in their minds–and I decided to ask my friends over at Twitter (where I’m @harrymccracken) for their takes as of right now.

What are your thoughts on the prospect of AT&T and T-Mobile merging? (I might quote you on Technologizer.)

— Harry McCracken (@harrymccracken) March 24, 2011

Herewith, some highlights.

@harrymccracken it will mean a whole LOT more to USA than to shareholders of #ATT. Approve!

— Bo Ekelund (@boekelund1) March 24, 2011

@harrymccracken not really fussed but hopefully they'll come up with a better name than 'everything everywhere' after orange tmob uk merger!

— Ed Bowden (@EdwardBowden) March 24, 2011

@harrymccracken I frequently travel to places w/o ATT coverage and everyone there uses unlocked iP hon es on T-mobile. I can't wait.

— Caleb Davis (@nadspapa) March 24, 2011

@harrymccracken probably awful for consumers in the long run. But I'm excited at the possibility of better service and coverage

— Elliot DeRemer (@ederemer) March 24, 2011

@harrymccracken As a T-Mobile subscriber, I just want to be able to keep my current (cheap) out-of-contract plan.

— Rajiv Varma (@RajivVarma) March 24, 2011

@harrymccracken AT&T is desperately trying to stop the bleeding. Haven't figured out how to roll out 4G, so they bought someone who has.

— Victor White (@VictorWhite) March 24, 2011

@harrymccracken I think it's a smart move for AT&T – question is, do I need a receiver upgrade to take advantage of the extended network?

— HEAR-IT-LIVE (@HEARITLIVE) March 24, 2011

@harrymccracken Great for T-Mobile, can't survive without it, good for AT&T, bad for consumers. Now let's see who buys Sprint.

— Paul Warner (@Paul_Warner) March 24, 2011

@harrymccracken bad customer service plus bad phone service is not exactly the right sort of synergy for success.

— Jordan B. Hodgson (@jordanbhodgson) March 24, 2011

@harrymccracken I think the merger is good for the progression of LTE but is a worry to those who fear further mobile data caps.

— Jose Gutierrez (@iJoseGutierrez) March 24, 2011

@harrymccracken In the country of free market, it seems odd that consumers are not up in arms about it. Competition is key to success.

— Charles L. (@Charles_L) March 24, 2011

@harrymccracken I seriously hope AT&T will improve network quality significantly. AT&T will hopefully get better with updates too.

— Neal Gompa (ニール・ゴンパ) (@Det_Conan_Kudo) March 24, 2011

@harrymccracken I'm going to miss the wide selection of Android devices. I hope that customer service will reach T-Mobile's standard.

— Neal Gompa (ニール・ゴンパ) (@Det_Conan_Kudo) March 24, 2011

@harrymccracken from a consumer perspective of competition, it's really bad. I don't gain anything by having fewer choices.

— Paul Judd (@pdjudd) March 24, 2011

http://twitter.com/#!/michaelhalbe/status/50980378638422016

@harrymccracken merger will close b/c Verizon supports it -am sure VZW is negotiating the piece they want, or use it to open another door.

— Bob Egan (@bobegan) March 24, 2011

@harrymccracken My thoughts: OhGod I hope AT&T doesn't screw it up; I LIKE T-Mobile. & I wonder how soon I can get an iPhone for TMobile.

— Esther Schindler (@estherschindler) March 24, 2011

@harrymccracken it's not good for consumers, we already have an oligopoly, less competition will not be positive for anyone but the networks

— Sean Brunett (@SeanBrunett) March 24, 2011

@harrymccracken Allow it, but threaten another MaBell breakup or even Nationalization if they don't deliver on their promises.

— Tom Woodsworth (@panamajack) March 24, 2011

@harrymccracken I like T-Mob. Why would I want less service for more money?

— Jacque Mundell (@jlmundell) March 24, 2011

And here are some opinions that arrived via Facebook:

 
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