Since the allowed merger of Verizon and Alltel, I can walk from one end of my 100 foot parking lot to another and change cells, or have to "dial an area code" to complete the call. Sure. Bigger is always better. (insert sarcasm here.) And, this is after repeatedly updating roaming as recommended by the carrier! Having to shut down towers as part of the terms of a merger sure benefits the US citizen who pays the big corporations big bucks for their "service" (note the quotes.)