Screwed

In an obvious deal to please shareholders and screw consumers, California regulators agreed to allow the acquisition of AT&T and Verizon Communications by SBC.

What makes this interesting and post-worthy is California law requires phone companies to split savings, such as the $2.7 billion dollars this merger will bring, with consumers the regulartors are going to allow the money to go straight to shareholders and the consumer will get screwed as they usually do in these mergers.

The regulators have required in previous mergers, such as when SBC bought Pac. Bell where consumers did receive the savings but not here the reasoning being "because the benefits of the merger will be passed through to California cnsumers through competition and market forces" said two commissioners in the draft decision.

What confuses me here is how are two less companies going to help competition?? That's the general problem I have with mergers because instead of increasing competition it's never the case and who loses in the end?? Consumers.