AT&T said Tuesday that it has reached a deal to buy the Alltel U.S. wireless operations for about $780. The company is buying the licenses, retail stores and network assets, along with about 585,000 subscribers, from Atlantic Tele-Network Inc.

Alltel's network covers about 4.6 million people in mainly rural areas across six states .

AT&T said it expects that as it upgrades the network, mobile Internet service will improve for both Alltel customers and AT&T customers who roam in those areas.

The deal remains subject to approval by the Federal Communications Commission and Department of Justice. The companies said they expect the deal to close in the second half of the year.