For Immediate Release
Gigi B. Sohn, president and co-founder of Public Knowledge, made this statement today on the decision of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to delay acting on the $80 billion merger of AT&T and BellSouth.
“Commissioners Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein should be commended for their strong stand protecting consumers by forcing the FCC to delay consideration of the merger of AT&T and BellSouth, as well as the accompanying notice on Net Neutrality.
“This deal and the Net Neutrality issue are too big to be rushed through the Commission, particularly considering that the Justice Department declined to attach any conditions to the merger. And the merger is certainly too important to the country to have it decided on the basis of last-minute proposals from AT&T that the public couldn't see, much less comment upon. The fact that those proposals will now be made public will help to improve the analysis and, we hope, lead to a better outcome. Public Knowledge looks forward to participating in the discussions as the issues move forward.”
Members of the media may contact Communications Director Shiva Stella with inquiries, interview requests, or to join the Public Knowledge press list at shiva@publicknowledge.org or 405-249-9435.