Wall Street Journal

A federal appeals court ruled the Federal Trade Commission can move forward with its lawsuit alleging AT&T misled wireless subscribers by reducing data speeds for several million customers who thought they had purchased unlimited plans. The ruling by the Ninth US Circuit Court of Appeals is a notable win for the FTC because it restores the agency’s regulatory authority over large internet service providers.

[Commentary]  One of the internet’s most important qualities is that it slashes transaction costs to a bare minimum. What has followed is a remarkable development: It is becoming cost-effective, even profitable, to serve the world’s poorest two billion people—whether they are online or not. Entrepreneurs are devising new services to provide neighborhood-scale renewable energy and clean water, gas cooking-stoves, microloans for consumer goods and insurance against natural disasters.

When US District Court Judge Richard Leon hears the U.S. government’s lawsuit to stop the merger of AT&T and Time Warner, he will be deciding not just one media deal but two. Not only can his decision allow one blockbuster merger, but it could also lead to the unwinding of a second. After President Donald Trump and AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson, the person who will most closely watch the case will be Brian Roberts, CEO of Comcast. If Judge Leon approves the deal, Roberts will likely lob in another bid for the assets that 21st Century Fox agreed to sell to Disney.