Comcast Pushes Desperately to Save the TWC Merger

[dgstorm]

Here's some great news for US consumers... it looks like things are bleak for the Comcast and Time Warner Cable merger. According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, the Department of Justice and the Federal Communications Commission are unlikely to approve the merger, and Comcast is making a last ditch effort to convince the government regulators that the merger should go through.

Supposedly, the two companies are willing to offer nearly any concessions which might convince these two governmental agencies to approve the merger. At this point it is unlikely that there is anything either company could offer which will change the government's position. Here's a quote with more of the details,

“Comcast and Time Warner Cable are slated to sit down for the first time on Wednesday with Justice Department officials to discuss potential remedies in hopes of keeping their $45.2 billion merger on track. One of the options that the FCC is considering is to designate the merger for a hearing, people familiar with the agency’s thinking said. A hearing order would put the merger in the hands of an administrative law judge, a move which would be seen as a sign that the FCC isn’t convinced the deal would be good for the public.”

This was the same thing that happened as the final, last-ditch effort during the failed AT&T and T-Mobile merger back in 2011. It's reassuring to find that the DOJ and the FCC are level headed enough to see that letting Dracula and Sauron team up to run rampant over American consumers is probably not a good thing in the long run. It's almost a shame that Comcast has spent so many millions of dollars lobbying to get this merger approved... "almost."

Source: WSJ

 

[Amazonfemme]

LOL about Dracula and Sauron. I hear Comcast's commercials on the radio and I start yelling back at them. As it is, Comcast's already got a semi-monopoly in many places.

I tried last week to ditch them for DirecTV, but I needed to keep Internet service because we can't get FIOS in our apartment complex. Turned out that "unbundling" would have ended up costing us way more, so we're stuck with them, at least for now. And to make matters worse, I got two COMPLETELY different stories from them the two times I called. I don't know whether they're incompetent or just lying liars who lie. Probably both.

I hate Comcast with the fire of a thousand suns.

 

[Ollie]

Unless some miracle happens that suddenly provides the masses with more television options then this merger would not be good.

 

[Vepaot]

Yeah because they don't have enough flippin' money already.

 

[boidsonly]

Just what America needs-less choice.
Hopefully this gets blocked by the DOJ....