Personal Connections Between Qwest and Verizon Could be Bad for Sprint

(NewsVisual, powered by IntellectSpace) -- Since the wireless-services agreement between Qwest Communications International Inc (NYSE: Q) and Sprint Nextel Corp (NYSE: S) is due to expire next year, business news reports have already begun to appear that claim Qwest is considering dumping Sprint as a partner and instead is seeking a new agreement Verizon Communications Inc (NYSE: VZ).

Although The Wall Street Journal first broke the story on Wednesday morning in an article that was based on an interview with Qwest’s Chief Executive Officer, NewsVisual has learned since then that there exists a small network of board-room connections that make a new deal between Qwest and Verizon highly probable.

A shift by Qwest to Verizon for wholesale wireless services would have a negative impact on Sprint’s balance-sheets.

NewsVisual created an IntellectSpace Knowledge Map that shows that there exist three nodal points of connections that run through non-profit organizations that connect three members of Verizon’s Board of Directors to two members of Qwest’s board.

The first nodal point is the most noteworthy:

Verizon Director John W Snow, a former United States Secretary of the Treasury, forms links with the two Qwest Directors, Patrick J Martin and Frank Popoff, through George Washington University and the Business Roundtable, respectively.

With regard to the second nodal point, Verizon Director Robert W Lane, the CEO/Chairman of Deere & Co, like Director Snow, forms a link with Qwest Director Popoff through the Business Roundtable as well.

Furthermore, Verizon CEO/Chairman Ivan G Seidenberg is also connected with Qwest Director Popoff through a third nodal point, the economics non-profit organization the Conference Board.

This last nodal point of personal connections could be interpreted as the most viable one from which talks of a deal could have first emanated.  For example, if Qwest wanted to pursue a deal, the company’s leader, Qwest CEO/Chairman Ed Mueller, could have asked Director Popoff to make contact with Seidenberg, Verizon’s top leader and decision maker.

Under any scenario, the personal connections illustrated by the Map could be logically interpreted as making a wireless-services deal more likely between the companies.

(Note: the information contained and presented in Knowledge Maps is public information from the Securities and Exchange Commission of the United States of America).

Click here for an interactive version of this IntellectSpace Knowledge Map.