Comcast, Time Warner Cable Deal Deserves Accurate Analysis

[Commentary] The Comcast-Time Warner Cable large merger deserves a careful look from the Federal Communications Commission and the Department of Justice, but knee-jerk reactions against any consolidation, all too common in the media, cloud the discussion.

We should consider the benefits to consumers and the overall economy, as well as the potential drawbacks instead of assuming big cable companies are necessarily bad. With a little analysis, the deal appears a win for consumers and the economy overall. The most important point, frequently overlooked or downplayed by opponents, is that Comcast and Time Warner have no overlapping service areas. The two simply do not compete. There will be no change at all to consumer-facing competition in the pay TV or broadband market after the deal goes through. Furthermore, what we should really be concerned with is intermodal competition, not how a merged entity would stack up against other cable companies. This deal will put the company on equal footing with satellite TV, and has potential pro-competitive benefits in broadband as well. Comcast has been investing heavily in building out its Hotspot 2.0 technology, lighting up Wi-Fi nodes along its cable plant. If anything, this deal will enhance competition, helping to push cable and wireless closer to substitutable products that compete.