2004年手机市场刮起合并风：先是Cingular公司买下了AT&T，此后Nextel公司又与Sprint公司合二为一。随着手机市场的整合，一些人不禁要问，生产商越来越少，手机市场会不会离消费者越来越远？

　　据《纽约时报》12月20日报道，2004年的手机市场厂商变少了，但服务不会减少。传统观念认为，竞争对手越少，公司面临的降价和服务压力越小，因此该行业的产品最终会涨价。

　　一些分析人士认为，电讯产业这一行要微妙得多，价格只是竞争的一个方面。一些大厂商，他们合并之后只要市场上有三家或是更多厂商，消费者就有选择的自由。前几年盛行的大幅跌价以后会减缓，因为价格已经没有下降的空间了。以后，他们拼的是服务、硬件质量和网络好坏。随着公司规模扩大，他们有更多的经济实力扩大网络覆盖范围。

　　此外，除了大厂商，在一些中小厂商和地方手机供应商之间，竞争仍然很激烈。消费者在这些领域还可以享受优质服务和优惠的价格。

　　目前，美国80%的成年人都有手机。如果要将手机扩大到剩下的人群，手机供应商需要增加，而不是减少，服务也不会减少。(朱红隽)

　　The rapid consolidation in the mobile phone industry, as illustrated by last week's proposed merger of Nextel and Sprint and Cingular's recent acquisition of AT&T Wireless, raises a compelling question: With fewer carriers, has power in the industry shifted away from consumers?

　　But industry analysts and executives say the dynamic in the wireless industry is far subtler, and that price is only one way to gauge competition. They argue there is still plenty of competition between the remaining providers and a number of regional companies to ensure that consumers not only have ample choices, but also receive better service and prices.

　　Even with the mergers, most markets are still served by three and often more providers, which gives customers a chance to shop around. (If mergers leave the industry with just two bigger players, prices would probably rise, analysts said.) The rampant price war that typified the industry's early days is bound to ease, but partly, analysts argued, because there is not much room left to cut.

　　According to J. D. Power & Associates, cellphone calls have fallen to 11 cents a minute, from 56 cents in 1996. Most analysts, including Raul Katz, president of the telecommunications consultant Adventis, do not expect prices to continue falling that steeply. Instead, they expect the variety of services and the quality of handsets and networks to improve.

　　With mobile phones now in the hands of 80 percent of American adults, the carriers have to reach ever-narrower segments of the population. To do that, they are expected to expand the number of service plans they offer, not reduce them.