Charter Queried on Web Video Rivalry by FCC in Time Warner Deal

Regulators reviewing Charter’s proposed $55.1 billion acquisition of Time Warner Cable want to know more about how the cable company has reacted to competition from streaming video innovators such as Netflix, Amazon and Hulu. The Federal Communications Commission, in a request released Sept 22, asked Charter for documents about its customer gains or losses to Web video and whether it’s slowed or blocked access to rival services.

The questions show the FCC is concerned about whether cable companies that provide access to the Internet may squelch streaming video that competes with their traditional channel lineup. Comcast in April abandoned its planned merger with Time Warner Cable after regulators said the combined company could thwart online video. The FCC also asked for similar information from Time Warner Cable and asked for responses by Oct 13.