Shareholders Approve MCI-Verizon Deal

MCI said on Thursday that its merger with Verizon had received the approval of 64.2 percent of its outstanding shares and 88.2 percent of votes cast. The company said it planned to get the votes certified as soon as possible.

From the results, it appears that talks of Qwest possibly trying to influence the vote either were false, or fell mostly on deaf ears.

Thursday's vote ends a contentious battle that began earlier this year between Qwest and Verizon over control of MCI. Qwest made the first move for the company in early February, followed a week later by Verizon approaching MCI about a possible buyout.

MCI would eventually accept Verizon's initial offer of $5.3 billion for the company on February 14, igniting a firestorm among influential shareholders over acceptance of the lower bid. Through nearly two months of wrangling and several sequential offers, a price of $8.45 billion was agreed to on May 2.

"This vote of support by our shareholders represents a key milestone in the merger approval process," Michael Capellas, MCI president and CEO, said in a statement. "The combined company will have the strength and assets necessary to be a competitive force in today's transforming communications marketplace."

The merger is expected to complete within the next several months, pending regulatory approval.