Goodbye to net neutrality. Hello to an even-bigger AT&T?

Two pivotal developments this week could dramatically expand the power and footprint of major telecom companies, altering how Americans access everything from political news to “Game of Thrones” on the Internet.

June 11 marks the official end of the US government’s net neutrality rules, which had required broadband providers such as AT&T, Charter, Comcast and Verizon to treat all Web traffic equally. The repeal is part of a campaign by Ajit Pai, the Republican chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, to deregulate the telecom industry in a bid to boost its investments — particularly in rural areas. “I think ultimately it’s going to mean better, faster, cheaper Internet access and more competition,” said Chairman Pai. Others disagree and will challenge Pai in court, while many states are fighting back with their own laws, further muddling the situation.

One day after the net neutrality changes, a federal judge is set to rule on June 12 on whether AT&T can buy Time Warner. AT&T, already the country’s second-largest wireless network, stands to gain a content trove from Time Warner that includes HBO and CNN — leading the Justice Department, which filed the lawsuit, to argue that the company could harm its rivals.

The two events in Washington could lead to further consolidation of wireless, cable and content giants, public-interest advocates say. And they fear that behemoths like AT&T might someday prioritize their own TV shows and other content over rivals’. Internet service providers, or ISPs, deny that they would engage in such a practice — yet consumer watchdogs worry that consumers would have little legal recourse if they did.

“I think this could be a one-two punch to consumers and online competition,” said Gene Kimmelman, the president of Public Knowledge, a D.C.-based public interest group. “The combination of no net neutrality and video consolidation creates new bottlenecks that empower the traditional media industry to raise prices and limit online competition.”