Rep. Inslee Agrees with FCC Decision to Further Review Proposed AT&T -- T-Mobile Merger

Press Release

Today, U.S. Representative Jay Inslee (WA-01), a Member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, released the following statement about the Federal Communication Commission's (FCC) decision to further review the proposed merger between AT&T and T-Mobile by referring the matter to an administrative law judge:

"I am pleased that the FCC took into consideration the impact on jobs in Washington state in assessing the public interest benefits of this merger as previous wireless mergers have resulted in significant reductions in Washington jobs," said Rep. Inslee. "In addition to job losses, the merging of two leading wireless providers would have resulted in one company having more than 50 percent of the local wireless market. Such dramatic market power would substantially reduce competition, leading to increased prices and reduced innovation."

In July, Rep. Inslee sent a letter to the CEOs of AT&T and T-Mobile asking for answers regarding the proposed merger of their two companies and how it might impact local jobs, customer service, competition and choice, investment and spectrum allocation. In August, he publicly released their responses and requested that the FCC hold a field hearing on the merger in Seattle. He serves on the Energy and Commerce Committee, which has jurisdiction over telecommunications.

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