In a nearly two and a half-hour
hearing Tuesday that turned contentious several times, lawmakers on a
House Judiciary Committee subcommittee tried to parse whether the
proposed merger of T-Mobile and Sprint is in the public interest.
Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and Administrative Law,
said from the outset he’s, “deeply skeptical” that consolidation
fosters more competition. Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI), said he hasn’t
made up his mind, but doesn’t think “antitrust questions should be
partisan.”
Full Judiciary Committee Chair, Jerry
Nadler (D-NY), said, “We must determine if a combined company would
have less incentive to innovate and compete with competitors” in an
already “highly concentrated” market.
The resulting three large carriers would each have a third of the market, he added.
T-Mobile CEO John Legere, who would
lead the “New T-Mobile” post-merger, said the result would be more jobs,
and “the new company would ensure America would win” the race to 5G,
everywhere, including rural areas. He also said the new entity would
offer in-home broadband, “freeing millions from the stranglehold of big
cable.” Continue Reading
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