Comcast/TWC Evidence That Regulation Decreasingly 'a Political Football,' DOJ Attorney Says
Justice Department opposition to Comcast buying Time Warner Cable is a prime example of federal regulators increasingly letting consumer well-being and not politics steer regulatory decisions, Bill Baer, assistant attorney general in the Department of Justice's Antitrust Division, said Thursday…
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Timely, relevant coverage of court proceedings and agency rulings involving tariffs, classification, valuation, origin and antidumping and countervailing duties. Each day, Trade Law Daily subscribers receive a daily headline email, in-depth PDF edition and access to all relevant documents via our trade law source document library and website.
at London's Chatham House. "Enforcement in the U.S. today is less a political football than at any time in its history," Baer said in remarks posted online. Baer's address focused on ways disruptive technologies or new competition is met by businesses, and the role the DOJ plays in trying to ensure consumer welfare trumps such strategies as collusion -- such as major book publishers and Apple, until challenged by the DOJ -- or acquiring the competition -- such as AT&T's attempt to buy T-Mobile, until opposed by the DOJ. "Political pressure is still there. Competition results in winners and losers. A lot of money is at stake," he said. On Comcast/TWC, the federal agency had concerns about the huge broadband customer share Comcast would have, and the collapse of that accusation "has cleared the way for future innovations that seem poised to transform how consumers interact with video and other online content," Baer said. Meanwhile, in the wireless industry, the DOJ backed FCC spectrum auction rules "to ensure smaller, disruptive firms are not blocked by the leading carriers," he said.