AT&T, T-Mobile Deal to Cost $100 Million in Lobbying?

AT&T knows it’s likely to get regulators to clear its proposed $39 billion acquisition of T-Mobile. Eventually. But the company also knows that it won't be easy. Nor will it be cheap.

If last year's deal between Comcast and NBC Universal was any indication, AT&T will need to spend at least as much, if not more, than the $100 million Comcast reportedly spent lobbying Congress and regulators. AT&T already has a good head start. The company is one of the heaviest hitters in the nation’s capital, spending $15.4 million on lobbying in 2010, according to OpenSecrets.org; roughly 100 lobbyists work for the telecom giant.