FCC chairman Tom Wheeler has recommended the approval of AT&T’s (NYSE:T) planned US$48.5bn purchase of DTH provider DirecTV (NASDAQ:DTV) with conditions aimed at boosting broadband competition and promoting net neutrality.
“The proposed order…
FCC chairman Tom Wheeler has recommended the approval of AT&T’s (NYSE:T) planned US$48.5bn purchase of DTH provider DirecTV (NASDAQ:DTV) with conditions aimed at boosting broadband competition and promoting net neutrality.
“The proposed order outlines a number of conditions that will directly benefit consumers by bringing more competition to the broadband marketplace,” Wheeler said in a late July statement.
The Department of Justice has already cleared the deal, with assistant attorney general Bill Baer stating that the watchdog does not believe it poses a significant risk to competition.
Wheeler noted that the conditions will also build on the FCC’s recently adopted Open Internet Order, which bans the blocking, throttling and paid prioritisation of content.
“First, in order to prevent discrimination against online video competition, AT&T will not be permitted to exclude affiliated video services and content from data caps on its fixed broadband connections,” he said.
Effectively, this means AT&T would have to provide fair access to all content providers and not favour any with which it may be affiliated.
In the interests of transparency, the telco will also have to submit all completed interconnection agreements to the commission, along with regular reports on network performance.
Wheeler stressed that an independent officer must be appointed to ensure the conditions are met.
“These strong measures will protect consumers, expand high-speed broadband availability, and increase competition,” he said.
If commissioners approve the conditions, Wheeler said 12.5 million customer locations will have access to a competitive, high-speed fibre connection, representing a tenfold increase to AT&T’s existing fibre-to-the-premise footprint. He added that this boosts the nation’s residential fibre build by more than 40% and more than trebles the number of metropolitan areas AT&T expects to serve.
AT&T said in its own statement that it is “pleased” the approval order has been circulated among commissioners. It furthermore hopes the approval will be finalised quickly, enabling it to close the deal shortly afterward.
New Street Research analysts said in an investor note that, while there is no time limit for commissioners to approve the vote, they expect it to take place by the end of this July.
“We expect a 5-0 vote with statements that have some political and policy overtones but no investment implications,” they said.
