"We're dealing with such a large portfolio of services that we can't easily migrate to another supplier, and they know that," he said. "But they still come to the table and negotiate with us based on the total dollar spend."

Don Gibson, vice president of e-commerce and infrastructure at FedEx Corp.'s FedEx Kinko's Office and Print Services Inc. unit in Dallas, said that he worked for AT&T Corp. in the 1980s, "and it's like it's coming full circle." But Gibson, another 2006 Premier 100 honoree, predicted that for corporate users, dealing with the new AT&T in the future "is going to be like it is today, or potentially better."

AT&T will be watched "very closely" on pricing over the next year or two if the BellSouth acquisition is approved, making it harder for the company to try to gouge users, Gibson said. "And hopefully, by having consolidated [operations], their costs will be lower," he said.