One Comcast Is More Than Enough

But if Charter’s bid to take over Time Warner Cable is approved we’ll have not one but two Comcasts to contend with — because that’s just how enormous and dominant a post-merger Charter would be.

In fact, if this deal goes through Charter and Comcast would offer service to nearly 80 percent of U.S. homes. The merger would kill competition, send prices through the roof, broaden the digital divide — and harm low-income communities of color the most.

Free Press is working with groups across the country to stop this deal — and we’re urging the FCC to use its power to block it. Last Thursday we visited the agency to deliver anti-merger comments from more than 300,000 people in the United States.

With a decision on the horizon now’s the time to ramp up the pressure and bombard the FCC with phone calls.

Need some inspiration?

Check out a sampling of the comments from Free Press members; then click here to make your call.

If these cable companies have extra cash they can use it to expand high-speed Internet service across America. —Greg Koshak, Larsen, Wisconsin

The mission statement of the FCC is to act “in the public interest, convenience and necessity.” Nothing in the Charter grab of Time Warner Cable is even close to fulfilling even one of these imperatives. —Ronald Rauscher, Austin, Texas

I cannot afford cable now. They are robbing us blind and I have no alternative. —Rebecca Nesline, Dover, Delaware

Having had to utilize Charter and their substandard service for over 10 years already at a cost of $68 per month for Internet only, and spotty Internet at that, I can imagine what my services would be like after this merger: shoddy and more expensive. —Valerie Hassard, Reno, Nevada

Too many low-income inner-city and rural youth are already left out. We need more competition, not less. —Mary Hansen, Mt. Joy, Pennsylvania

I’m a Charter customer and I oppose this merger. The only way they will offer you a better price is if you leave them and come back. If you are an existing customer they pretty much ignore you and just want to get paid. —Ryan S. Wagner, Madison, Wisconsin

This merger will only increase the divide between the few very rich and the hundred(s) of millions of poor in America. —Karen Wright, Riverside, California

Time Warner Cable has abysmal customer service. I yearn for competition but if I want Internet in my home they are currently the only option. Reducing the number of companies will only force customers to choose between no service and bad service. —Nathaniel Grubbs, Morrisville, North Carolina

I cannot get broadband even though Time Warner Cable tells the FCC they service my area. My neighbors are very frustrated by this. Please stop this merger and force them to provide the service they say they provide. —Jack Prindle, Union, Kentucky

I’m a Time Warner Cable customer and I’m on Social Security disability. I do not want to see my Internet bill go up any further. In fact, I just switched to a lower tier of service due to a ridiculous price increase in the tier I had. Internet service is extremely important to me as it’s my main source of news and communication. Please do not price people like me out of Internet service. —Kathleen View, Elmira, New York

Haven’t we had enough of large companies bullying us? The only people that will benefit from this merger are the lobbyists and the corporate giants who want to line their pockets with our money. Please protect us working class by blocking this merger. —Susan Jett, Seagoville, Texas

I am a Charter customer. The thing that terrifies me is that they will raise the cost of Internet to way more than I already pay now. I can live without cable TV but not Internet and there are no other options in my area to switch to. —Linda Cameron, Richland, Washington

Do we have to keep doing this? Mergers between these giant companies have no winner but shareholders. Customers will suffer from astronomical prices and abysmal customer service. These companies go out of their way to provide mediocre service, kill competition and prevent municipalities from rolling out their own broadband, even when they themselves are not interested in offering it to that area. And all of this is due to their lobbying power and their already too-big footprint. We do NOT need another merger. —Javier Ruiz, Jacksonville, Florida

Stop the insanity! —Fran, Syosset, New York