T-Mobile and sprint just got one step closer to merging, after the Federal communications Commission voted to approve the deal on a party-line vote, with Democrats on the Commission voting against the move.
On the same day that Democratic FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel wrote in a review for the Atlantic on Wednesday that the merger would be a net negative for consumers and raise prices, an FCC official confirmed to the Verge that the merger was approved.
This, however, does not mean that Union is necessarily inevitable. That’s because a multi-state group of attorneys General is still trying to prevent the merger from being finalized through litigation, and representatives for both Sprint and T-Mobile say the companies want the litigation reviewed before they move forward.
Rosenworcel said in its review today that it believes will happen next, after the merger is official. “Today, as Commissioner of the Federal communications Commission, I voted to block the merger of T-Mobile and Sprint, the third and fourth largest wireless carriers in the country,” she wrote. “… The largest wireless merger in history is now moving toward approval. If you have a cell phone – like 96% of American adults – that’s bad news.”
Reducing the number of national wireless operators from four to three, she continued, would mean thousands of jobs would be eliminated (as a result of overlapping roles). It will also harm competition and, in General, ” harm consumers.”
As FCC Chairman Ajit Pai sees things, however, he has been for a deal since may, deciding that this combination could support faster adoption of 5G technology.
Recall that the FCC signing was the only other regulatory approval needed, after the U.S. Department of justice previously approved the $26.5 billion merger Pai followed suit shortly after, saying it would be for him as long as the two companies meet certain requirements that included the divestment of Boost Mobile.
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