Survey: AT&T deal appears less likely

The likelihood that federal regulators will allow AT&T to buy T-Mobile has slipped, according to a survey of telecommunication analysts released Thursday by financial firm Stifel Nicolaus.

Thirty-two analysts rated their expectation that the government will approve the deal, on a scale of 0 to 100 percent. The analysts' average score was 49.5 percent. The likelihood fell from 54.7 percent in July, the last time the survey was conducted. In the past month, the Federal Communications Commission announced it would take more time to study the merger, and several lawmakers — including the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee's Antitrust Subcommittee, Sen. Herb Kohl (D-WI) — announced their opposition to the deal.