Congresswoman Matsui Calls for Congressional Hearings on Comcast-Time Warner Cable and AT&T-DirecTV Mergers

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, May 20, 2014

CONTACT: JONELLE TRIMMER
(202) 225-7163

Congresswoman Matsui Calls for Congressional Hearings on Comcast-Time Warner Cable and ATandamp;T-DirecTV Mergers

Public Hearings would allow the American public to understand more what these mergers mean for them and for competition in the market

During this morning's Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Communications and Technology Hearing with Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Tom Wheeler, Congresswoman Doris Matsui (CA-06) called for a congressional oversight hearing on the recent proposed mergers between Comcast and Time Warner Cable and DirecTV and ATandamp;T:

"Like other major mergers, the proposed mergers between Comcast and Time Warner Cable, and between ATandamp;T and DirecTV could have real impacts on consumers and the marketplace. Ultimately, I believe that these companies need to demonstrate that these proposed mergers will not leave consumers with less choice and higher costs.

"The FCC is scrutinizing these mergers but there is a primary oversight role here for Congress as well. That is why this morning I called for the Communications and Technology Subcommittee to hold a hearing on these proposed telecom mergers. These are some of the largest mergers in our nation's telecommunications history and Congress must exercise its oversight role to carefully examine their impact on a competitive marketplace."

Congresswoman Matsui called for a hearing on the proposed mergers during today's Communications and Technology Subcommittee hearing titled "Oversight of the Federal Communications Commission." FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler was present as the hearing's sole witness.

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