Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, ANTITRUST NEWS: Franken asks FCC, DOJ to scrutinize Charter-TWC merger, (Oct 9, 2015)
Organizations Mentioned:Bright House Networks | Charter Communications | Time Warner Cable, Inc.
By Michael Menzhuber, J.D., LL.M.
In an October 8 letter, Senator Al Franken (D.-Minn.) urged FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler and Attorney General Loretta Lynch to examine “with the highest level of scrutiny” the proposed merger of Charter Communications with Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks. He asked the federal officials to give careful consideration regarding whether the deal’s potential competitive harms outweighed the companies’ promised benefits.
According to the letter, the federal agencies should examine: (1) how the deal would impact consumers, particularly those living in rural areas; and (2) whether the companies’ commitment to serve the public interest are reliable and the best way of expanding and improving access to broadband and cable services.
Franken expressed concern that the companies’ public interest statement did not specify how and where they intended to build their network. He also expressed concern that the post-merger firm would have taken on considerable debt—an obstacle to its expansion of broadband services into rural areas.
Careful consideration must be given to whether the potential competitive harms of this transaction continue to outweigh the promised benefits, Franken warned. While pleased that the firms acknowledged that abiding by the FCC’s Internet Order would yield significant benefits for the public, Franken was disappointed that the expressed commitments were limited to a three-year period.
Franken observed that the key remaining questions were: (1) whether further consolidation was the only or best means of achieving the important goals of the companies’ public interest statement; and (2) whether the transaction would still serve the public interest if the asserted commitments were not deemed enforceable or reliable. He concluded that further consolidation in the industry should be permitted only if it results in better and more affordable services for consumers across the nation, including those living in rural areas.
News: Antitrust FederalTradeCommissionNews