FCC Chairman Statement on T-Mobile/Sprint Transaction [pdf] | Hacker News Reader

FCC Chairman Statement on T-Mobile/Sprint Transaction [pdf]

docs.fcc.gov

14 pointsdaegloe5 comments

The statement reads directly like it's coming directly out of of the mouths of T-Mobile and Sprint's own CEOs.

We don't actually need to "accelerate" 5G deployment. What we need is to have real carrier choice (4 nationwide carriers instead of 3) so that prices don't increase to unattainable levels.

In no way does this statement address what will happen to our cellular bills. What will prevent T-Mobile/Sprint from raising its price to match Verizon? What will prevent Verizon and AT&T from raising their prices further as well? How high will MVNO prices increase due to this merger?

Right now, Sprint is the lowest cost carrier in the country, and it along with its MVNOs are a great alternative for many customers. That will go away after this merger occurs.

Sprint is a dead carrier walking. They wasted a fortune years ago on WiMax. Now they don't have the capital or the subscriber base to build a 5G nationwide network. This merger is more likely to preserve some real competition over the long run.

Cheap Sprint MVNO prices aren't much good to the many consumers in areas where they have shitty coverage. Their network and spectrum is just really weak.

Exactly. In fact, their network is so bad, they've been offering free service for nearly 2 years now, and still aren't growing...

Given the current FCC Chairman, I cannot bring myself to even look. This person is definitely not pro-consumer. There are definitely places where consolidation into a given company can be a positive. I cannot be convinced that given the actions taken by the telecom industry in the past that any movement towards more consolidation will be a net positive today and in the near future.

I had no idea the above comment would be quite so divisive (noting up/down on points movement). It's simply hard to trust an insider working in the government given the revolving door that the FCC and other regulating bodies have been within their respective industries. Combined with a lot of anti-consumer efforts from the FCC specifically.

I also saw the comment regarding it looking more like a corporate press release. I'm effectively saying that any trust the FCC Chairman may have had has, in my mind, been completely eroded to the point that my own bias could not overcome it.

I'm not sure that even three national carriers is enough with a lack of collaboration between them. Given the current direction, it'll eventually become an anti-trust issue anyway.

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