Comcast’s plan to acquire Time Warner Cable couldn’t see the light of the day. The largest broadcast company dropped its $45 million deal. The deal was criticized by regulatory bodies for breaching antitrust laws. Several experts also pointed that this deal would have turned Comcast into Super Corporation, which will create monopoly and destroy other players. This deal would have made internet censorship easier. Chairman Tom Wheeler from the Federal Communications Chairman (FCC) said in a written statement that online video providers would have suffered due to the acquisitions. The deal would have also killed start ups and other competition in the market.
The combine market share of the two companies would have been around 55 percent in terms of broadband and 30 percent in terms of Television connection. The Comcast and Time Warner Cable are two largest content providers in the United States. Together this super corporation could have control enormous amount of content viewed and downloaded by the citizens. The reduced competition may have resulted into higher product costs and lower variety of the content to choose from.
The emerging players providing similar services such as Netflix, Sling TV or Dish objected to the deal. Chairman and CEO Brian Roberts from the Comcast said that the agreement was designed in such a way that it allowed them to exit anytime. There have been many attempts to acquire Time Warner Cable by other market leaders. After Comcast, Charter Communications Inc. , fourth biggest cable player in the United States is gearing up for its acquisition. It is will their second attempt as first one was rejected last year.
