US: Is a Verizon-Charter merger in the works?

A report from the Wall Street Journal Thursday morning saying that Verizon was considering buying Charter Communications sent the latter company’s shares up 9 percent in early trading, valuing the company at more than $84 billion, according to Thomson Reuters.

Verizon is reportedly taking a preliminary look at a merger with fellow telecom giant Charter.

If both companies agreed, such a deal would likely be met with significant regulatory scrutiny over potential antitrust and anticompetitive concerns, given the overlapping media and communications spaces the companies occupy.

The move would also go against its rival AT&T’s strategy to acquire Time Warner to increase its media holdings, and suggests Verizon now thinks infrastructure is more important than content, Moffett said.

“Verizon’s interest in wires is diametrically opposite from AT&T’s interest in content,” said Moffett. “It’s unlikely both of them are right.”

Full Content: Wallstreet Journal 

Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.