US: AT&T/DOJ Judge tells lawyers to speed up proceedings

The federal judge in the Justice Department’s (DOJ) antitrust case against the US$85 billion AT&T/Time Warner merger reportedly told lawyers for both sides to up their tempo or risk missing the extended June 21 deadline to consummate the deal.

If the merger is denied by regulators, AT&T would have to pay Time Warner US$500 million for its efforts. If the media company backs out, it would be on the hook to AT&T for US$1.7 billion.

“Both sides need to sit down with their clients and their teams and make sure they have down what they need versus what they want,” US District Court Judge Richard Leon said on March 28, as reported by Reuters. “If we are going to get this done prior to that date, we have to move.”

The trial in Washington, D.C., which is in its first week, is slated to last six to eight weeks.

The DOJ contends the merger would be harmful to consumers, with AT&T leveraging third-party access to Time Warner assets HBO, Turner (TBS, TNT, CNN) and Warner Bros. for its own DirecTV platforms.

Full Content: Reuters

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