FCC Accepts AT&T’s Request For Withdrawal
Amit Chowdhry | Wednesday November 30, 2011 | 221 views| Add a Comment
The Federal Communications Commission has granted AT&T’s request to withdraw its application to buy out T-Mobile. The FCC also released a 109 page report yesterday about what they think about the merger after much review. The FCC’s report lists more cons about the deal than pros. The FCC said that the merger would cause too many inefficient network issues and job losses. The cost savings generated by the deal wouldn’t be passed on to the customer either.
AT&T’s next move is to deal with the U.S. Justice Department and they are in discussions with Leap Wireless about selling them assets from T-Mobile. Below is a statement from AT&T:
The FCC has recognized that it is required by its own rules to dismiss our merger application. This makes all the more troubling their decision to nonetheless release a preliminary staff report on the merger. This report is not an order of the FCC and has never been voted on. It is simply a staff draft that raises questions of fact that were to be addressed in an administrative hearing, a hearing which will not now take place. It has no force or effect under law, which raises questions as to why the FCC would choose to release it. The draft report has also not been made available to AT&T prior to today, so we have had no opportunity to address or rebut its claims, which makes its release all the more improper.
Sprint rejoiced at the response by the FCC:
Today the FCC released the results of its nearly eight month investigation into AT&T’s proposed purchase of T-Mobile. FCC Chairman Genachowski and the staff of the Commission have listened to the American consumer. Consumers are best served when competition is allowed to thrive. At Sprint we share this view and applaud today’s actions by the FCC.
The investigation’s findings are clear: approval of AT&T’s bid for T-Mobile would lead to higher prices for consumers, eliminate jobs, harm competition, and dampen innovation across the wireless industry.
These are the same conclusions which led the U.S. Department of Justice and a bi-partisan group of Attorneys General from seven states and Puerto Rico to sue AT&T, Deutsche Telekom and T-Mobile in Federal Court in an effort to block the transaction.
Most importantly, these are the same conclusions reached by tens of thousands of consumers from across the country who have spoken out overwhelmingly against AT&T’s proposed takeover of T-Mobile.
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