The US Department of Justice (DoJ) is reportedly set to approve AT&T’s (NYSE:T) agreed US$48.5bn acquisition of DirecTV (NASDAQ:DTV) with no conditions.
The competition review will now require sign-off by the DoJ’s top officials, with the case then…
The US Department of Justice (DoJ) is reportedly set to approve AT&T‘s (NYSE:T) agreed US$48.5bn acquisition of DirecTV (NASDAQ:DTV) with no conditions.
The competition review will now require sign-off by the DoJ’s top officials, with the case then passing to sector regulator the FCC, according to a Bloomberg report citing sources.
Earlier this week the telco extended the termination date for its DTH acquisition. It asked “for a short period of time to facilitate obtaining final regulatory approval,” and added that it expected the deal to be approved “shortly”.
Analysts have generally expected both regulators to clear the deal, which was agreed in May 2014.
AT&T is expected to accept the FCC’s new net neutrality rules to win clearance, despite being among industry players to have filed a lawsuit challenging them.
Speaking to TelecomFinance earlier this week, New Street Research analyst Jonathan Chaplin said it looked as though the DoJ had already signed off on the transaction, pointing out that Saturday’s July the Fourth holiday could impact review timings for both regulators.
He added that the FCC has been examining possible conditions around net neutrality, interconnection and low-income access.
Rivals and consumer advocacy groups are seeking conditions such as banning AT&T from forcing customers to buy bundled packages and not favouring its own video services over those of OTTs.
