On January 9, 2005, Western Wireless entered into a merger agreement with Little Rock-based telecommunications provider Alltel, in which Alltel agreed to pay $6 billion in shares and cash to Western Wireless shareholders. Western Wireless shareholders voted on July 29, 2005, to accept a $4.4 billion offer in shares and cash from Alltel. The merger was completed on August 1, 2005. Western Wireless founders, John W. Stanton and Theresa Gillespie, founded Trilogy International Partners and retained Nuevatel as part of their assets.
