The Briefing Room
General Category => Economy/Business => Topic started by: Free Vulcan on June 12, 2018, 05:23:27 pm
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Washington (AFP) - A high-stakes decision in a US court Tuesday will be significant for the future of Big Media, Big Tech and big business in general.
A US federal judge was set to announce his verdict in the $85 billion merger of wireless and broadband giant AT&T with media-entertainment conglomerate Time Warner.
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In the most high-profile antitrust case in decades, the ruling is likely to set a benchmark for whether other mega-deals, especially in the media and communications sectors, can proceed or will face heightened antitrust scrutiny.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/high-stakes-ruling-awaited-t-time-warner-merger-142911568.html (https://www.yahoo.com/news/high-stakes-ruling-awaited-t-time-warner-merger-142911568.html)
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Merger approved! :thumbsup:
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Two sucky companies now become one giant sucky company.
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Merger approved! :thumbsup:
Soooo.... you're in favor of huge monopolies controlling every aspect of an industry.... in this case, the cable TV industry?
I'm betting you're also a big fan of "Big (G) Government" too.... right?
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Two sucky companies now become one giant sucky company.
And ..... like the government....
now too big to succeed (at anything but getting richer off the backs of hard-working Americans via higher and higher prices). I recommend everyone just cutting the cord with mega cable TV. I plan to.
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Soooo.... you're in favor of huge monopolies controlling every aspect of an industry.... in this case, the cable TV industry?
I'm betting you're also a big fan of "Big (G) Government" too.... right?
I'm against big government and don't want big government dictating what happens in private industry including picking winners and losers. In this case, there was CLEARLY no anti-trust issues IMO (and in the opinion of the judge also).
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I'm against big government and don't want big government dictating what happens in private industry including picking winners and losers. In this case, there was CLEARLY no anti-trust issues IMO (and in the opinion of the judge also).
A company that's "Too Big To Fail" essentially becomes a Government Trust.
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I'm against big government and don't want big government dictating what happens in private industry including picking winners and losers. In this case, there was CLEARLY no anti-trust issues IMO (and in the opinion of the judge also).
I'm confused. How can there be 'no anti-trust issues'? Please explain.
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I'm confused. How can there be 'no anti-trust issues'? Please explain.
Especially in a industry where people are supposed to get their view of the world. A consolidated media just becomes a giant playground on which the Government Propagandists can play on.
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Especially in a industry where people are supposed to get their view of the world. A consolidated media just becomes a giant playground on which the Government Propagandists can play on.
Exactly. In my area, for instance, there was only Direct TV, AT&T and Time Warner as an option. With all three morphing into one conglomerate, they will feel free to up the rates accordingly. You either pay their higher rates or you go without. I plan to have to go without. Sucks.
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I'm confused. How can there be 'no anti-trust issues'? Please explain.
It's a vertical integration. Proving antitrust is extremely difficult in most vertical integration mergers.
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It's a vertical integration. Proving antitrust is extremely difficult in most vertical integration mergers.
Sorry... that might as well be Greek....lol.
It's a bad deal for the average consumer, especially ones that can't afford to pay higher cable rates & fees.
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Exactly. In my area, for instance, there was only Direct TV, AT&T and Time Warner as an option. With all three morphing into one conglomerate, they will feel free to up the rates accordingly. You either pay their higher rates or you go without. I plan to have to go without. Sucks.
Josef Goebbels would have loved this.
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Sorry... that might as well be Greek....lol.
It's a bad deal for the average consumer, especially ones that can't afford to pay higher cable rates & fees.
Under a horizontal integration merger, two companies that are direct competitors merge, thus reducing the competition available. This type of a merger moves the industry closer to a monopoly. Had Verizon merged with AT&T, for example, that would have been a horizontal merger and would have limited competition.
In a vertical integration merger, two companies that are NOT in direct competition with each other merge, but the two companies are in the same supply chain. That's what happened in this case. Proving that there's less competition is extremely difficult in this type of a merger because the two companies merging are in different markets/industries. In the AT&T and Time Warner case generally, AT&T is a telecom provider -- they provide the transport while Time Warner does not provide transport, but rather they provide content.
I hope that helps.
EDIT: Added comment about the supply chain.
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Under a horizontal integration merger, two companies that are direct competitors merge, thus reducing the competition available. This type of a merger moves the industry closer to a monopoly. Had Verizon merged with AT&T, for example, that would have been a horizontal merger and would have limited competition.
In a vertical integration merger, two companies that are NOT in direct competition with each other merge. That's what happened in this case. Proving that there's less competition is extremely difficult in this type of a merger because the two companies merging are in different markets/industries. In the AT&T and Time Warner case generally, AT&T is a telecom provider -- they provide the transport while Time Warner does not provide transport, but rather they provide content.
I hope that helps.
It does help (thanks)... and I understand the concept (now). But.... I don't see it as being accurate... since AT&T was, in fact, in direct competition with Time Warner re: AT&T U-Verse Cable TV.... and especially after taking over Direct TV, which left Time Warner as their only "main" competition. Please tell me where I'm wrong re: this analysis.... cause that's how I see it and it seems pretty plain and obvious to me.
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It does help (thanks)... and I understand the concept (now). But.... I don't see it as being accurate... since AT&T was, in fact, in direct competition with Time Warner re: AT&T U-Verse Cable TV.... and especially after taking over Direct TV, which left Time Warner as their only "main" competition. Please tell me where I'm wrong re: this analysis.... cause that's how I see it and it seems pretty plain and obvious to me.
Clearly you are not cut out to be a US Federal Judge. Congratulations.
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It does help (thanks)... and I understand the concept (now). But.... I don't see it as being accurate... since AT&T was, in fact, in direct competition with Time Warner re: AT&T U-Verse Cable TV.... and especially after taking over Direct TV, which left Time Warner as their only "main" competition. Please tell me where I'm wrong re: this analysis.... cause that's how I see it and it seems pretty plain and obvious to me.
At the macro level, AT&T is a transport company and Time Warner is a content provider. Any direct competition in transport is relatively minor. I think if you Google “AT&T, Time Warner, and vertical integrationâ€, you’ll see that most analysts consider this a vertical integration (it’s quite obviously one). Here are two such conclusions:
A federal judge in Washington on Tuesday cleared the $85.4 billion merger of AT&T and Time Warner with no conditions in a landmark decision expected to encourage more vertical combinations among media and entertainment companies.
The ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Richard Leon was a significant defeat for the Department of Justice, which stunned the legal establishment with its November challenge of the transaction -- the first lawsuit against a vertical deal in more than 40 years.
The outcome of the trial could spur a wave of deals in the telecom and media industries, as well as clear the way for future vertical mergers, where a company buys its supplier. Comcast has been eyeing a similar merger to combine production and distribution in a competing bid for Fox and was preparing to announce an offer as soon as Wednesday if Leon ruled in favor of AT&T in the trial, people familiar with the matter told CNBC.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/finance/companies/judge-clears-at-26t-time-warner-deal-with-no-conditions-in-landmark-decision/ar-AAyyIKv (https://www.msn.com/en-us/finance/companies/judge-clears-at-26t-time-warner-deal-with-no-conditions-in-landmark-decision/ar-AAyyIKv)
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/06/12/att-time-warner-ruling.html (https://www.cnbc.com/2018/06/12/att-time-warner-ruling.html)
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Exactly. In my area, for instance, there was only Direct TV, AT&T and Time Warner as an option. With all three morphing into one conglomerate, they will feel free to up the rates accordingly. You either pay their higher rates or you go without. I plan to have to go without. Sucks.
How do you get Satellite Service for Direct TV and not be able to get Dish Network?
https://www.reviews.org/tv-service/best-satellite-tv-providers/ (https://www.reviews.org/tv-service/best-satellite-tv-providers/)
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AT&T announced Thursday evening that it has completed the acquisition of Time Warner. The announcement comes two days after a judge ruled that the deal does not violate antitrust laws.
"The content and creative talent at Warner Bros., HBO and Turner are first-rate. Combine all that with AT&T's strengths in direct-to-consumer distribution, and we offer customers a differentiated, high-quality, mobile-first entertainment experience," Randall Stephenson, chairman and CEO of AT&T, said in a statement. "We're going to bring a fresh approach to how the media and entertainment industry works for consumers, content creators, distributors and advertisers."
http://money.cnn.com/2018/06/14/media/att-time-warner-deal/index.html?utm_source=CNN-News-Alerts&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=AT&T+completes+acquisition+of+Time+Warnerfd8a31ec-7ff9-4c9a-a882-92f0cb955b68&utm_term=488a0ebe-68b0-6380-7186-b17af8bfa512 (http://money.cnn.com/2018/06/14/media/att-time-warner-deal/index.html?utm_source=CNN-News-Alerts&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=AT&T+completes+acquisition+of+Time+Warnerfd8a31ec-7ff9-4c9a-a882-92f0cb955b68&utm_term=488a0ebe-68b0-6380-7186-b17af8bfa512)