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Technology Stocks : Qwest Communications (Q) (formerly QWST) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Rupert who wrote (5359)	11/11/1999 12:23:00 PM
From: MangoBoy	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 6846

[FCC head says US West, Qwest merger on "fast track"] WASHINGTON, Nov 11 (Reuters) - The Federal Communications Commission's review of Qwest Communications International's proposed $36 billion acquisition of US West Inc. is on the "fast track," the agency's chairman said. William Kennard, speaking to a conference of state regulators in Texas on Wednesday, said the merger would be dealt with far more quickly than merger of local phone giants SBC Communications Inc. and Ameritech Corp. The FCC approved that megamerger in October, 15 months after the deal was filed at the FCC. "Some mergers, like SBC-Ameritech, take time," Kennard said in a copy of his remarks released on Thursday. "Others, like US West-Qwest, move along more quickly." "I'm pleased with the progress being made by US West-Qwest," Kennard added. "The companies are working to demonstrate that their transaction will not harm the public interest and it's fair to say that their application is on the fast track." The biggest hurdle for the deal at the FCC is the 1996 Telecommunications Act's limit on Bell company long-distance offerings. Under the law, Denver-based US West is prohibited from offering long-distance voice or data service, including Internet transport, within its 14-state region until it proves it has opened its local network to competitors -- a laborious state-by-state process that could take years to complete. On Oct. 18, the companies filed a detailed plan to divest Denver-based Qwest's lines of business in US West's local service region. Shareholders of both companies and the U.S. Justice Department have already cleared the merger, but regulators in as many as nine states are still reviewing the transaction.