The American Cable Association and NAB said AT&T’s...
The American Cable Association and NAB said AT&T’s proposed buy of DirecTV should be examined closely. The deal “demands a hard look in an increasingly consolidated broadband and pay television marketplace,” NAB said in a statement Monday (http://bit.ly/1kmiUMe). “It is…
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hard to see how decreasing competitors in the pay TV marketplace -- while increasing regulatory restraints on local TV stations -- truly benefits consumers.” AT&T agreed to net neutrality commitments, expanding broadband to rural communities and other conditions if its acquisition of DirecTV is approved (CD May 20 p1). ACA is troubled “by the consolidation wave within the video subscription marketplace,” highlighted by Comcast agreeing to buy Time Warner Cable and AT&T/DirecTV, said President Matt Polka. The latter “merits the closest scrutiny” by the Department of Justice and FCC, he said in a news release Monday (http://bit.ly/1k36ucP). Congress and the FCC need to take a comprehensive look at the market that will exist if the deals are approved, and “decide whether existing rules that govern the current market are sufficient for the new industry order,” he said.