"As an analyst that has studied the telecommunications business for almost two decades, I am absolutely baffled by the nonsensical explanation employed by the Department of Justice in its precedent-setting Sirius-XM merger-to-monopoly approval." So says Jimmy Schaeffler, Chairman & CSO of The Carmel Group. The merger plan is now under scrutiny at the FCC.
"To use the applicants’ callous disregard for FCC rules as the basis for such approval, defies all common sense and sets a dangerous precedent for future companies that would prefer to simply buy their rival, rather than actually compete in the marketplace," continued Schaeffler. "Worse still, along the way, the DOJ and the companies lost sight of their most important audience: the consumer."
Consumers Union VP and frequent Capitol Hill testifier Gene Kimmelman also weighed in on the DOJ decision. "If the DOJ truly believes the failure to develop an interoperable radio is diminishing competition between XM and Sirius, it should be promoting aggressive steps to market that interoperable radio rather than allow the two companies to combine into a monopoly," he said, according to the Associated Press.
RBR/TVBR observation: Rather than add anything further to these remarks, let us instead rerun a brief video from Consumers Coalition for Competition in Satellite Radio.
