Alltel customers in Nebraska officially became Verizon Wireless customers Friday. But some Verizon Wireless customers officially got put in limbo.

Verizon announced a 10-county area in eastern Nebraska — Boone, Butler, Colfax, Dodge, Merrick, Nance, Platte, Polk, Saunders and Washington — is one of four areas where it is divesting its own customers and keeping Alltel’s.

As part of federal approval for its $28.1 billion purchase of Alltel, Verizon was required to divest assets and customers in more than 100 markets where its service overlaps that of Alltel.

That means about 2.1 million customers nationwide will get a cell company other than Alltel or Verizon.

Verizon would not say how many Nebraska customers are included in that number.

Verizon spokeswoman Karen Smith did not give specifics about why the company chose to drop Verizon subscribers in Nebraska. She said the decision was based on “the investments made in the market and what we thought was the best business decision going forward.”

But she noted Verizon Wireless has no retail stores in the 10-county area, while Alltel does.

And she said Fremont would be most affected by the divestiture.

Wireless World in Fremont is listed as an authorized seller of Verizon Wireless. A person who answered the phone there said the store wasn’t allowed to comment. Smith said Wireless World and any other authorized sellers in the affected area would continue to serve customers put in the trust.

The divested customers will see no change for the near-term. Verizon said it has placed licenses and assets for the markets to be divested in a management trust, which will continue to operate the markets under their current brands until buyers can be found — meaning customers in the 10-county area will remain Verizon Wireless customers for the foreseeable future.

Divested customers are bound by the terms of their current contracts, Smith said. But after those expire, nothing would prevent them from signing a new contract with Verizon Wireless.

For existing Alltel customers, nothing will change for a few months.

Verizon said the company will continue to use the Alltel brand for the next several months as it works to integrate networks, convert billing systems and upgrade high-speed wireless broadband service.

Alltel customers who are being retained will receive a letter during the next few weeks providing details about the purchase.

Verizon said Alltel customers do not need to take any action now. Customers’ current service plans, prices and features will remain the same throughout the transition, and Alltel customers will be notified, by mail, about any upcoming changes.

Because Verizon and Alltel use the same technology platform, most customers will be able to use their phones after the transition, the company said.

Verizon Wireless plans to re-brand Alltel operations in the retained markets in phases, beginning in the second quarter and continuing through the third quarter of 2009, as billing conversions are completed throughout the country. During the transition, Alltel-branded stores will remain open to serve customers.

The company would wait to determine whether to close any retail stores until after the integration is complete, Smith said.

According to the companies’ Web sites, there are five Alltel stores and two Verizon stores in Lincoln.

Alltel employees below the executive level also will keep their jobs for now. Verizon will make decisions on staffing levels later.

Smith said more than 400 people work at the Verizon Wireless customer service center in Lincoln, and the company is still hiring as it works toward its goal of about 800 employees. Combined, Verizon and Alltel have about 1,000 employees in Nebraska, she said.

With the acquisition of Alltel, Verizon Wireless becomes the largest wireless carrier in the country, with about 83.7 million subscribers before the divestitures.

It will be by far the largest wireless carrier in Nebraska, as Alltel and Verizon ranked first and second for market share in the state.

Reach Matt Olberding at 473-2647 or molberding@journalstar.com.