MCI Rejects Revised Qwest Offer

The saga over who will acquire long distance provider MCI took another twist early Wednesday, as MCI announced a revised offer from Qwest is not superior to its already-established merger agreement with Verizon, despite a higher payout to shareholders. But MCI says it "has the right" to continue talks with Qwest.

On Monday, Verizon threatened to withdraw its bid for MCI if the company found Qwest's offer, which totaled $9 billion, superior. Verizon remains adamant that "numbers in the Qwest proposal mask a myriad of financial and operational risks" and warned MCI against making a deal that benefits only short-term investors.