SBC To Adopt 'AT&T' As Post-Merger Moniker

SBC announced earlier this year that it would acquire AT&T for $16 billion.

The takeover is on track for completion by the end of the year, when the newly combined company expects to kick off a major multimedia marketing campaign.

In a statement on Thursday, SBC said that, moving forward, the company intends to lead the industry in the creation of a new generation of Internet Protocol-based services, which can be delivered through wireline or wireless networks to mobile phones, PCs and hand-held digital devices.

SBC local service and broadband capabilities, which currently total 50.2 million access lines and 6.5 million DSL lines in service, will be combine with AT&T's IP network and broad-based telecom software infrastructure. (SBC also has in its fold more than 52.3 million subscribers nationally through its 60 percent ownership of Cingular Wireless.)

The age and seasoning of the AT&T brand appear to be rationale behind its adoption. In a prepared statement, the companies said that AT&T has earned a reputation during its 120-year history as a global icon linked to the birth and growth of the communications industry. They said the brand is recognized by 98 percent of consumers and virtually 100 percent of businesses and is known for cutting-edge innovations for modern computers, electronic devices, wireless phones and Voice over IP.