Activists from CREDO Action, Demand Progress, and Free Press are calling on regulators to stop the dangerous $85 billion mega-merger
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 2, 2016
Press contact: Kate Kizer, [email protected], 240.349.6575
In just over a week since the AT&T takeover of Time Warner, Inc. was announced, more than 115,000 Americans have signed petitions, hosted by CREDO Action, Demand Progress, and Free Press, opposing the deal.
The petitions call on Washington policymakers to stop the mega-merger, noting the dangerous concentration of economic and political power the deal would create, and that such mega-mergers rarely benefit consumers – instead serving to line the pockets of corporate executives.
“This merger would hurt consumers, stifle competition and poison our democracy,” said CREDO Deputy Political Director Josh Nelson. “It would reward Wall Street banks with huge fees while offering consumers less choice and higher prices,” he continued. “Washington’s failure to block mergers and bust up existing monopolies has already put far too much economic and political power in the hands of major corporations,” Nelson added. “Federal regulators must stop this anti-consumer merger from moving forward.”
“It’s clear that this merger would be a disaster for consumer choice and an open internet,” said Demand Progress Campaigner Kate Kizer. “But there is another danger lurking in this deal: Increased economic power leads to increased political power that will let the new conglomerate manipulate laws and regulations further to its own advantage – and against the interests of ordinary Americans,” she continued.
“Unless you’re a Time Warner shareholder, one of its corner-office executives, or an AT&T lobbyist, this merger would be catastrophic,” said Free Press Field Director Mary Alice Crim. “AT&T is taking on hundreds of billions of dollars in debt to complete this deal. And there’s only one way it will pay it down: by hiking up the already pricey monthly bills paid by customers. What may make a few AT&T and Time Warner executives even wealthier than they already are will come at a massive cost to everyone else. That’s one of the many reasons so many people are urging Washington to reject this merger.”
These activists represent a growing grassroots, antitrust movement to stop 21st century monopolies. As more details about the deal are revealed, CREDO Action, Demand Progress, and Free Press will continue to leverage this growing national opposition and distrust of mega-mergers to defeat this toxic deal.
Follow the links to view the petitions: CREDO Action, Demand Progress, and Free Press.
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