Consolidation in Global Telecomms

One of the things making it somewhat difficult to keep track of things is the fairly constant merger & acquisition (M&A) activity in media and communication fields.  Here's an article giving an overview of some of the major activity among global carriers (telephony/cell), and the differing motivations.  One major shift from the 1990s is that much of the activity seems to be centered around consolidation and potential for cost-cutting, rather than just increasing corporate size.