Ding-dong, the merger’s dead.
After the FCC reportedly told Comcast it would oppose its $45 billion acquisition of Time Warner Cable, Comcast is apparently ready to walk away from the deal, Bloomberg reports. The result: Two mostly terrible cable companies won’t turn into one entirely terrible cable company—one that would have controlled between a third and half of the U.S. broadband market.
FCC staff reportedly said the merger would threaten competition and innovation, and thus would likely harm consumers. When reached for comment, the Internet had one response: “Well, duh.”
So you can also breathe a sigh of relief now. Though to be safe, you might want to wait until tomorrow, when Comcast is likely to announce it’s officially abandoning the deal.
Do Not Pass Go
The merger’s death is a big win for consumers and the open Internet. Neither Time Warner and Comcast face much competition in their respective territories. Linking the two companies into one mega-ISP would only serve to consolidate their power over other media and Internet companies and give them an even stronger grip on the pipes that connect us to the Internet.
See also: With Time Warner, Comcast Wants Total Control Of The Internet Pipes
This is the latest unexpectedly Internet-friendly action by the FCC. Back in February, the FCC’s chairman, Tom Wheeler, offered his plan to reclassify the Internet as a utility in order to preserve net neutrality.
Lead image courtesy of Shutterstock; Comcast remote photo by Steven Depolo
