[4536] in Privacy_Forum
[ PRIVACY Forum ] Like mobsters dividing turf,
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (PRIVACY Forum mailing list)
Mon Jan 27 19:10:54 2014
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2014 15:43:53 -0800
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Like mobsters dividing turf, the giant ISPs talk about dividing up the
country into fiefdoms
Comcast and Charter want to split up Time Warner's cable markets
http://j.mp/1d5gPN1 (Ars Technica)
Comcast and Charter are working out a deal in which Charter would
acquire Time Warner Cable (TWC) and then sell some of those assets to
Comcast. Previously, Charter offered to buy Time Warner for $61.3
billion or $37.3 billion excluding TWC's debt. Time Warner management
rejected the amount, but Charter is attempting to push an acquisition
through by appealing to shareholders. Today, Bloomberg reported that
Comcast "is near a deal to buy New York City, North Carolina, and New
England cable assets from Charter Communications Inc. if shareholders
approve Charter's takeover bid for Time Warner Cable Inc."
- - -
In most industries, this sort of activity would be viewed as illegal
restraint of trade. That these firms are so openly talking about
divvying up the universe of captive Internet users (that's you and
me -- though these companies are clearly interested in our dollar value
only, not in providing robust Internet services per say) is not only
shameful, but a vivid illustration of how the U.S. Internet access
industry has become an effective monopoly in all but name. They sound
like mobsters splitting up cities for numbers rackets, prostitution,
and heroin sales. Disgraceful.
--Lauren--
Lauren Weinstein (lauren@vortex.com): http://www.vortex.com/lauren
Co-Founder: People For Internet Responsibility: http://www.pfir.org/pfir-info
Founder:
- Network Neutrality Squad: http://www.nnsquad.org
- PRIVACY Forum: http://www.vortex.com/privacy-info
Member: ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy
Lauren's Blog: http://lauren.vortex.com
Google+: http://google.com/+LaurenWeinstein
Twitter: http://twitter.com/laurenweinstein
Tel: +1 (818) 225-2800 / Skype: vortex.com
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