X
Finance

Some AT&T customers seeking to block T-Mobile merger

Not everyone is in favor of the proposed merger of AT&T and T-Mobile. Obviously, there's Sprint. But some of AT&T's own customer base is speaking out against the deal too.
Written by Rachel King, Contributor

Not everyone is in favor of the proposed merger of AT&T and T-Mobile. Obviously, there's Sprint. But some of AT&T's own customer base is speaking out against the deal too.

Well, at least 11 customers are upset. Certainly, there could be many, many more  people within AT&T's customer base that are unhappy about the proposition, but these guys are so against the merger to the point where they're willing to hire lawyers and file arbitration cases to full out block it.

Specifically, this band of customers are basing their claims on the most obvious argument against the merger of two of the nation's largest carriers: it could seriously deter (or completely prevent) competition. AllThingsDreports:

“Government enforcement is an important part of the antitrust laws, but the Clayton Act also permits private parties who may be adversely affected to challenge a proposed merger,” attorney Scott Bursor said in a statement. “That means any AT&T cellphone, data or iPad customer who will suffer higher prices and diminished service because of this merger can sue to stop it from happening.”

Earlier this week, Sen. Herb Kohl (D-Wis.), head of the Senate Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee, also spoke out publicly slamming the proposed merger, reiterating how "dangerous" this situation could be for both competition and consumers.

Regardless, AT&T asserted during its quarterly conference call for investors on Thursday that the mobile provider is on track to getting approval from the FCC for the merger. T-Mobile continues to act like nothing is going on and rolled out new unlimited data plans, which would surely disappear if the deal with AT&T pans out.

Related:

Editorial standards