Ten Years Ago... Bell Partners' Next Hurdle Is Credibility

BELL PARTNERS' NEXT HURDLE IS CREDIBILITY
[SOURCE: New York Times 4/28/1997, AUTHOR: Mark Landler]
Ten years ago this week, Bell Atlantic and Nynex completed a regulatory steeplechase when the Justice Department announced it would not try to block their $22 billion merger. And though the companies tangled for more than a year with angry consumer advocates, balky state officials and skeptical regulators, their big deal came through without a scratch. Landler speculated that the challenge ahead for the combined company would be convincing competitors and consumers to accept the Government's conclusion that the combination posed no threat to an open marketplace. The consumer advocates and other critics were not optimistic. To them, the decision was part of a string of Federal and state rulings that did not put any curbs on the market power of the vast new company. "This really demonstrates that the Telecommunications Act by itself is never going to be enough to guarantee competition," said Consumers Union's Gene Kimmelman.
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