*** TO ALL*** SBC and Ameritech merger approved !!!
Wednesday October 6 4:10 PM ET
FCC Approves SBC-Ameritech Merger
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Communications Commission Wednesday approved SBC Communications Inc.'s (NYSE:SBC - news) $61 billion acquisition of Ameritech Corp. (NYSE:AIT - news), allowing the creation of the largest U.S. local phone company.
The FCC said the companies agreed to an unprecedented series of concessions to gain approval, including giving competitors deep discounts when leasing access to their networks, invading 30 markets outside of their local regions and offering high-speed Internet access through a separate unit.
The concessions were backed by more than $2 billion in potential fines.
FCC Chairman William Kennard said the conditions ensure that the merger will enhance local competition and aids consumers.
``It's a victory for consumers,' Kennard said. ``The companies are tearing down the wall of local monopolies.'
After Illinois regulators approved the deal on Sept. 23, the FCC was the only hurdle remaining. Several other states and the Department of Justice had already agreed to let the merger go forward.
The combination of San Antonio-based SBC, the dominant provider of local phone service in eight western and southwestern states, and Chicago-based Ameritech, the dominant local carrier in five Midwestern states, will create a communications powerhouse with revenues of over $45 billion and control of one-third of U.S. phone lines.
FCC staff had recommended that the agency block the deal as anti-competitive unless the two companies agreed to conditions that would boost competition and provide benefits to the public.
With SBC's acquisition of Ameritech, only four of the seven original ``Baby Bells' created in the 1984 break-up of the old Bell system remain independent. SBC acquired Pacific Bell in 1987, when Bell Atlantic Corp. (NYSE:BEL - news) also acquired NYNEX.
On the New York Stock Exchange, shares of SBC rose 11/16 to 51-5/8, while Ameritech shares rose 1-1/16 to 67-3/4.
dailynews.yahoo.com
Now, we will see insiders coming into play before the end of October. I don't know if they will announce this before or after the results (Oct 26). |
