Verizon reportedly looking to ‘resolve’ relationship with Vodafone this year

Verizon is reportedly looking to “resolve” its relationship with Vodafone, its European counterpart that holds a 45 percent stake in Verizon Wireless. According to Bloomberg, Verizon hopes to either end its relationship with Vodafone or fully merge the two companies by the end of the year. While these companies have talked about changing their relationship for some time now — Verizon CFO Fran Shammo reiterated last week that Verizon has always been interested in owning all of its US wireless business — this puts a more concrete timeline on the potential dealings. That said, no formal talks are underway yet — talks about the potential buyout of Vodafone’s interest in Verizon Wireless haven’t advanced to “substantial negotiations,” though talks are expected to start up again soon after discussions stalled out back in December.