MetroPCS obtains Cingular air

Cell-phone service provider MetroPCS can finally do business in its hometown. On Monday, the Dallas-based company agreed to pay $230 million for Cingular Wireless spectrum, the lifeblood of wireless services. That price tag covered spectrum in both Dallas and Detroit. A MetroPCS representative confirmed the carrier's plans to do business in the two markets but wouldn't comment further. The carrier has more than a million subscribers in parts of Florida, Northern California and Georgia.

Recently, Cingular Wireless struck a deal to sell some assets to telephone operator Alltel for $170 million in cash. The sale satisfies requirements that the Justice Department and Federal Communications Commission set in order for Cingular Wireless to buy AT&T Wireless. At 46 million subscribers, the combined entity surpasses Verizon Wireless as the largest U.S. carrier.