As Denis mentioned in Good Morning News (and as your Twitter feed is probably still freaking the fuck out about), Comcast is trying to acquire Time Warner, at which point will they not only will control a huge swatch of media and infrastructure, but they’ll also probably change their name to OmniCorp and expand Comcast’s home security business into national security.
Over at the Verge, Bryan Bishop has a solid post that articulates exactly why—well, look at the headline: “Why You Should Be Scared of Comcast and Time Warner Cable Merging.”
It would turn the behemoth into a titan, expanding Comcast’s reach and power in unprecedented ways. Tie in the fact that Comcast also owns NBCUniversal—which means it has a movie studio as well as broadcast and cable networks of its own—and you’re looking at a vertically integrated media juggernaut. One that wouldn’t just be in control of our televisions, but would be ready to steer the direction of any future online services as well. (Via.)
And if that’s not chilling enough, just think of how much shittier Comcast’s customer service will get when they have one less major competitor to worry about. Read the whole thing here.
So…. how is this different than the Apple/Disney juggernaut?
Competitor? Who does Comcast compete with? Are there parts of the country where there’s actually a viable alternative to Comcast, or where Comcast is a competitor to another media giant? I know if I want anything resembling a useful internet provider, it’s Comcast or nothing. Century Link is a joke, and Time Warner has no footprint here. It seems like all we’re doing is consolidating two regional monopolies into a national monopoly.
I believe that’s the complaint, yes.
I switched from Comcast internet to Century Link and cannot imagine ever going back. Now if I could just get Dish or Direct TV, I would be even happier. Comcast sucks the big one.