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The AT&T-Time Warner Merger Must Be Stopped (backchannel.com)
New submitter mirandakatz writes: AT&T's proposed merger with Time Warner is evidence that AT&T doesn't ever plan to invest in fiber to the home, writes Susan Crawford at Backchannel -- and that's just one of many reasons the merger is a catastrophic idea. Crawford writes: "It's hard to think of a single positive thing this merger will accomplish, other than shining a bright light on just how awful the picture is for data transmission in this nation. This deal should be dead on arrival. In fact, AT&T should spare us by dropping the idea now. This merger must not happen."From the report: Think about it. AT&T sells wires to about 51 million homes, far more than any other telephone or cable company in the country. Because of its large presence in many markets, it overlaps with cable companies in many places -- AT&T overlaps with Comcast in 45 percent of Comcast's footprint and with Charter in 52 percent of its footprint. But, after a flurry of debunked press releases, it's totally clear that AT&T has no real interest in upgrading its copper networks to fiber to the home. Its capital expenditures keep going down, not up. (Would you trust the future to a company that doesn't see the need to increase investments in its core business, and instead is content to harvest profit from its subscribers?)
Should the conversation be about breaking up AT&T and Time-Warner in order to create MORE competition in the marketplace not discussing a merger that would basically make the United States serviced by a single broadband provider (I assume that an AT&T/Comcast merger would quickly follow).
I think Google is plenty interested in fiber to the home, they're not interested in the unending lawsuits from incumbents seeking to block them from using public right-of-ways (the same ones they themselves use) to compete.
actually it was
the railroads were built by cheap government backed loans and the protection of the US Army. lots of other infrastructure was built by the government or with heavy government support. very few are dumb enough to risk their own money on risky business adventures
Time Warner is the entertainment wing. Think Warner Bros and the former Turner networks.
Time Warner Cable is the former cable wing that was spun off years ago and is now owned by Charter Cable. The only common ground was their name since it never changed it when they spun it off. That's why their changing their name to Spectrum now that Charter bought them.
This would have no effect on broadband. If anything it will make DirecTV cheaper (since they won't have to pay for the Turner channels anymore since they own them) and possibly other cable companies more expensive by raising the retransmission rates to Turner channels.
Still not good for consumers but its not going to kill broadband as we know it.
In Soviet Russia, Trojan exploits YOU!
Water, Electricity, Gas, Data - it's all at the same level of national importance.
The network should not be in the hands of a profit driven company.
What needs to happen in the US is what you guys had back in the 90's and early 00's where the last mile providers were required to rent out their infrastructure to other ISP's. There was an incredible glut of ISP's, and I can remember driving down I75 seeing the billboards for $19.95 5/1 DSL with no caps, and the new higher speed cable connections for $29.95 with no caps. This is what we have running in Canada now, after nearly 14 years with Bell, Rogers, Telus and so on saying "it'll be the death of our companies!!!!!111111" and so on. It hasn't happened, and most recently they got a huge slap in the face when the CRTC told them they must lease last mile FTTN and FTTH to third party ISP's(called TPIA's here).
Om, nomnomnom...
the railroads were built by cheap government backed loans and the protection of the US Army. lots of other infrastructure was built by the government or with heavy government support. very few are dumb enough to risk their own money on risky business adventures
Conservative business people, they are the biggest hypocrites. They supposedly hate socialism but when it suits them they let the taxpayers foot the bill for transportation systems that they use for transportation of goods and make profits off of those goods. Who's not getting skin in the game again?
Millenials want everything for free without getting any skin in the game? What about businesses not wanting to succumb to the almighty cost of doing business but want to reap all the profits? Who's the free loader again? It's all selfish greed no matter where you look. Everyone trying to spin their own self interest into some crusade for principles to appear to be some hero while they take the shirt right off your back. We are a mess in this country.
Socialized medical care? That's evil unless it's for the military then it's noble.
Disclaimer: I'm MUCH older than the millenial generation
We'll make great pets