FCC orders cell roaming pacts

The Federal Communications Commission voted to require large cellphone companies to enter roaming agreements with rivals, a move that regional operators said would allow them to offer more-reliable service.

Roaming agreements allow customers of one company to use another network when they travel outside the range of their carriers’ cell towers. The 5-0 decision is meant to ensure that subscribers of smaller mobile-phone companies have service beyond the reach of their local network.

The FCC ruling also covers “push to talk” connections and text messaging.