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Comcast/Time Warner merger may be scuttled

Apr 22, 2015 12:02 am
Larry Rulison in the Albany Times-Union says several reports indicate federal regulators have major reservations with Comcast's acquisition of Time Warner, with the Justice Department and the Federal Communications Commission unlikely to approve the deal. In February 2014 Comcast said it wanted to buy Time Warner Cable for $45 billion, but would need approval from federal regulators and several states, including New York. The Public Service Commission in New York has repeatedly delayed any decision, lately saying it was waiting for federal decisions. Now, Rulison reports, Comcast is considering giving up the deal. "We have not seen any reason yet why New York consumers would be better off if the merger was approved," Richard Berkley, executive director of New York's Utility Project, an Albany-based consumer advocacy group, told the Times Union on April 20. "The standard for approval of things like this merger is that they must be in the public interest. At this point in time, neither of the companies nor the (commission) have produced any evidence that a merger would do (that)." Read the full story in the Albany Times-Union.