On February 12, 2014, Comcast disclosed plans to acquire Time Warner Cable for approximately $45.2 billion; Time Warner Cable agreed the following day. The transaction would have expanded Comcast’s already dominant U.S. cable footprint into major markets including New York City, Los Angeles, Dallas–Fort Worth, Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Charlotte, San Diego, and San Antonio. Comcast was already described as the largest U.S. home Internet provider and the second-largest cable company by subscribers, prompting concern that the merger would further reduce competition in local broadband markets.
Critics argued that combining the country’s largest cable operator with another major provider would give Comcast greater leverage over television networks in rebroadcast-fee negotiations and over Internet carriers through peering agreements. The company’s ownership of NBCUniversal also raised concerns about vertically integrated control of both content and distribution. The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on April 9, 2014, while the House Judiciary Committee planned its own review; critics also scrutinized FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler’s former leadership of major cable and wireless lobbying groups and Comcast’s political donations. The proposed acquisition was ultimately scuttled amid regulatory and antitrust opposition, preserving Time Warner Cable as an independent company at the time.
