OKLAHOMA CITY-A lawsuit stemming from the rural service area lotteries of the late 1980s was resolved recently when United States Cellular Corp. won a $9.5 million award from Southwestern Bell Mobile Systems Inc.
United States Cellular holds a 14.6 percent interest in the Oklahoma City metropolitan statistical area, through its subsidiary United States Cellular Co. of Oklahoma City; the majority owner of that system is Southwestern Bell.
United States Cellular claims that Southwestern Bell violated partnership arrangements when it sought, by lottery, several RSAs adjoining the Oklahoma City MSA under the name Southwestern Bell only, and not the name of the partnership. Therefore, it provided service in those areas independent of the partnership. A federal court judge for Western Oklahoma ruled in favor of United States Cellular for actual damages plus interest and costs.
