FCC should approve the Comcast-Time Warner Cable merger but keep a watchful eye

[Commentary] The government’s smartest move is not to block the Comcast-Time Warner Cable merger, but to make clear that regulators will respond if big industry players begin to violate basic principles of market fairness.

Some merger supporters overstate the extent of competition the cable industry faces. At the moment, there are few broadband services as attractive as the wired connections cable companies sell. That might change, but it is not clear how fast and in what way. Merger defenders also downplay the conflicts of interest that might encourage firms such as Comcast to promote their products on the wires they own, about which critics are speculating. That is not grounds to take the severe step of blocking a proposed merger. But it is reason for federal regulators to keep a close eye on what cable companies, still huge players in how we communicate and consume culture, end up doing to competitors and upstarts -- and to set clear conditions that allow a crackdown, if necessary.