US Sues to Stop AT&T Buying Time Warner

The US Department of Justice sued AT&T on Monday to block its $85.4 billion acquisition of Time Warner, saying the deal could raise prices for rivals and pay-TV subscribers while hampering the development of online video. Analysts say that the law is likely on AT&T's side in the Time Warner battle, however.

The Justice Department is arguing that AT&T would use Time Warner’s films and movies to force rival pay-TV companies to pay “hundreds of millions of dollars more per year for Time Warner’s networks” in the lawsuit filed late Monday in federal court in Washington. The government cited documents where AT&T and its satellite broadcast unit DirecTV described the traditional pay-TV model as a “cash cow” and “golden goose,” suggesting customers were at risk of price hikes.

Good - fuck AT&T and all these huge mergers.

When Time Warner Cable got bought up by Spectrum, two things happened: The price went up, service went to shit, and there are NO alternatives in my area but AT&T (which costs even more for a lot less service)

described the lawsuit as ”a radical and inexplicable departure from decades of antitrust precedent.”

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Not to defend AT&T, but they're not wrong here when US doesn't enforce any of the antitrust laws for decades. US gov and DOJ are a joke when it comes to antitrust laws.

Also, communications companies should of never been allowed to own content, ever! Customers get screwed with stupid exclusivity.

Z3r0k3wl said:

Not to defend AT&T, but they're not wrong here when US doesn't enforce any of the antitrust laws for decades. US gov and DOJ are a joke when it comes to antitrust laws.

Also, communications companies should of never been allowed to own content, ever! Customers get screwed with stupid exclusivity.

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Well the current administration did run on the platform of stopping these big mergers. They also need to breakup Comcast or nationalize the frigging means of transmission. This stranglehold that local governments have given these companies has to end. We broke up the telephone companies for the very same reason decades ago.

The government will lose this one, vertical mergers haven't been blocked frequently for several decades because the proof of anti-competiitive results is far more difficult. All 50 states and all foreign governments have already agreed -- Trump hates CNN which is the real issue here.

Cable companies have a natural monopoly and should be regulated as utilities, as nobody will duplicate the massive infrastructure required.

Another example why the US Internet is so poor in many regions. The FCC should simply make it condition that the merged entity provide new high speed (>25 or 50Mbps) service to several million homes that currently don't have it. The law simply cannot keep up with the pace of technological change.

RealBeast said:

Cable companies have a natural monopoly and should be regulated as utilities, as nobody will duplicate the massive infrastructure required.

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Those days are over. A cable company is merely an ISP that streams digital video.

the Comcast-NBCUniversal deal went through with certain conditions, so I would guess that this one will eventually go through with similar stipulations. Too bad that net neutrality is under attack at the same time this deal is happening as strong neutrality rules would help to reduce monopolistic abuses by content owners.

They've already allowed their competitors to integrate content producers. I don't see them stopping this merger.

It's getting to the point where a few select companies will own the majority of the U.S.'s information infrastructure, distribution contracts, and content.

Just in time for NN to end!