A Fabrairu, labarai ya rabu cewa kebul da Kattai na Intanet Time Warner Cable (TWC) da Comcast za su haɗu, suna sanya sabon kamfani mai kula da ayyukan da aka yi wa abokan cinikin su miliyan 30. Kuma ba gwamnatin Obama ko Majalisa ba da alama suna ɗaga tutoci da yawa. David Carr a cikin wasu harsuna New York Times kwanan nan yayi mamaki da ƙarfi game da tayin dala biliyan 45 na Comcast na TWC, “Ta yaya babban kamfanin kebul na kasar zai iya yin tayin siyan na biyu mafi girma da kuma samun iko a kan 19 daga cikin manyan kasuwanni 20 na kasar - wanda ya daidaita kaso 30 cikin 40 na kasuwar na USB da kashi XNUMX cikin dari a cikin broadband - kuma babu tambayoyi masu mahimmanci?"
a ta bayanin maslahar jama'a wanda aka shigar a wannan watan tare da Hukumar Sadarwa ta Tarayya, Comcast ya ba da fa'idodi da yawa da ake tsammani na haɗakar, har ma da jayayya cewa shiga tare da TWC zai zama "mai son cin kasuwa, mai fa'ida, da… Amma nazarin gaskiyar ya nuna ainihin yadda wannan da'awar ta kasance.
Keɓaɓɓu ɗaya don Bauta musu duka
Don ƙarfafa da'awarta cewa haɗakar Comcast-TWC ba za ta kasance mai adawa da gasa ba, Comcast yayi gardama a cikin bayanin amfanin jama'a cewa yana da ƙaramin sawu a kasuwa fiye da masu fafatawa. Ya ambaci, alal misali, Microsoft yana sanar da "cewa zai ƙunshi tallace-tallace a kan Xbox One, ƙirƙirar sabon dandamali na tallan bidiyo," da kuma gaskiyar cewa "Amazon ya ci gaba da yin amfani da dandamalin tallace-tallacen da ba a daidaita ba da dangin kwamfutoci masu gasa don haɓaka Firayim Minista mai tasowa. Kasuwancin Bidiyo kai tsaye…
Matsalar wannan hujja ita ce Amazon da Microsoft, kamar yadda daulolinsu suke da yawa, ba sa sarrafa ainihin damar mutane zuwa talabijin na USB da broadband (wanda ya fi ko žasa larura ga masu amfani da Intanet a cikin 2014). Xbox One da ke ba da Netflix baya hana masu amfani samun damar sabis akan yawancin na'urori masu fafatawa, amma ba haka lamarin yake ba don samun damar samun bayanan asali waɗanda hanyoyin sadarwar kebul na TWC da Comcast ke bayarwa. Idan haɗin gwiwar ya gudana, dubun-dubatar Amurkawa za a kulle su cikin ƙananan kasuwannin kebul da manyan hanyoyin sadarwa, ba za su iya yin zaɓe da ƙafafunsu ba kuma su zaɓi masu fafatawa waɗanda ke ba da sabis daban-daban.
Ta yaya sabon kamfani na Comcast-TWC zai kasance mai zaman kansa? Susan Crawford, babban darektan Cibiyar Intanet da Jama'a ta Berkman a Jami'ar Harvard. kimomi cewa "cibiyar sadarwa za ta wuce kusan kashi biyu bisa uku na gidaje na Amurka (ma'ana cewa waɗannan gidajen za a iya haɗa su da hanyar sadarwar kamfanin ba tare da wani ƙarin fadada hanyar sadarwa ba). Kamfanin zai sami mai fafatawa kai tsaye guda ɗaya: sabis na FiOS na Verizon, wanda zai mamaye kashi 15 cikin ɗari na sabon yankin kamfanin.
Ƙungiyar masu amfani ta yi gargaɗi cewa "Comcast ya mallaki nau'ikan abun ciki da tashoshi na talabijin sakamakon hadewar da ya yi a baya da NBC Universal. Ta hanyar mallakar babbar hanyar sadarwa ta kebul da bututun watsa labarai da mahimman abun ciki, Comcast zai sami ikon sarrafa saurin, inganci, da nau'in shirye-shirye don adadin masu amfani da ba a taɓa gani ba."
Amma ba kawai masu amfani ba ne ke iya samun ɗan gajeren sandar.
"A nan gaba ba tare da Neutrality na Net ba, Comcast zai kasance da 'yanci yin aiki a matsayin babban editan Intanet, zabar abin da abun ciki da ayyuka ke samun kulawa, da abin da ba ya - abin da abun ciki ke shiga ta bututunsa, da abin da abun ciki ke samu. an toshe," in ji Tim Kar na Free Press. "Wannan ba kawai zai kawar da duk wani sabon abu na kan layi wanda Comcast ba ya sarrafa shi, zai kuma yi barazana ga 'yancin fadin albarkacin baki na duk masu amfani da kan layi, gami da 'yan jarida."
Abin ban mamaki, Comcast yana jayayya a yau cewa siyan TWC zai yi kyau ga masu siye, amma ya yi akasin hujjar a cikin 2010 - cewa kiyaye TWC a matsayin mai fafatawa zai hana halayen gasa biyo bayan siyan sa na NBCUniversal. A zaman kwamitin shari'a na majalisar dattawa a wannan watan, Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) ya nuna wannan munafunci:
Comcast ya bayar da hujjar cewa babu wani abin damuwa game da nan saboda baya gasa tare da Time Warner Cable a kowace lambar ZIP… Lokacin da Comcast ya so ya sami NBCUniversal, Shugaban Comcast ya gaya wa wannan kwamiti kar ya damu da shi saboda har yanzu akwai sauran masu rarraba ƙarfi. kuma ya ba da suna musamman Time Warner Cable, wanda zai hana Comcast saita farashin gasa don abun ciki na Comcast.
Ma'anar ita ce Comcast ba zai iya tserewa da irin wannan hali ba saboda masu rarraba ciki har da Time Warner Cable ba za su tsaya ba, kuma za su iya zuwa FCC su yi korafi game da shi, kuma. Daga baya a cikin sauraron karar, Shugaban Kamfanin Comcast ya kuma gaya mana, 'Ba mu samun wani girma a rarraba na USB a nan.' To, idan wannan yarjejeniya ta ci gaba, Comcast zai zama mafi girma a rarraba na USB, kuma idan wannan yarjejeniyar ta ci gaba, Comcast ba zai sake komawa ba. dole ne a yi shawarwari tare da Time Warner Cable idan ya zo ga saita farashin abun ciki na NBC. Kuma abun ciki na NBC, kowa ya kamata ya tuna, shine 20-wasu cibiyoyin sadarwa.
Comcast ba zai iya samun ta hanyoyi biyu ba. Ba zai iya cewa kasancewar gasar tsakanin masu rarrabawa ciki har da Time Warner Cable shine dalilin amincewa da yarjejeniyar NBC a 2010 sannan kuma ya juya bayan wasu shekaru kuma ya ce rashin gasar tare da Time Warner Cable shine dalilin amincewa. wannan yarjejeniya.
Amma kamar yadda yake faruwa sau da yawa a Washington, muhawarar da aka yi a bainar jama'a ita ce kawai ƙarshen ƙanƙara a cikin yunƙurin sauye-sauyen manufofin.
Tasirin Watsawa
Comcast na iya samun wahala wajen gamsar da jama'a cewa ƙananan zaɓin suna da kyau ga masu amfani, amma yana danna saiti na albarkatu don tabbatar da cewa Washington ba ta ƙi.
Jim kadan bayan sanar da yarjejeniyar, Sanata Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) fitar da sanarwa tare da haskaka haɗin gwiwar, yana mai cewa kamfanonin da abin ya shafa sun yi alkawarin kare ayyukan yi a jihar New York. Ya kasance nan da nan ya bayyana cewa ɗan'uwan Schumer yana ɗaya daga cikin lauyoyin da suka tattauna yarjejeniyar, kuma shi da sauri ya janye kansa daga mu'amala.
Duk da wannan koma baya, Comcast ya ci gaba da aiki tukuru don samun tasiri a Majalisa. Yayin da kwamitin shari’a na majalisar dattawa ya fara sauraren karar hadewar, ya kira shedu daga bangarorin biyu na muhawarar. Christopher Yoo, kwararre ne na antitrust wanda yana koyarwa a makarantar shari'a ta Jami'ar Pennsylvania, jãyayya cewa haɗin gwiwar "ba shi yiwuwa ya cutar da masu amfani a kowace kasuwa." Matsalar ita ce, David Cohen, babban jami'in Comcast wanda shi ma ya ba da shaida a zaman, shine shugaban amintattu na Jami'ar Pennsylvania - ma'ana shi ne a matsayin shugaban Yoo.
Amma tattara shaidu da daukar lauyoyin da ke da alaƙa da Sanatocin Amurka ba su ne kawai dabarar hannun Comcast ba. A cikin 2013, Comcast yana da masu fafutuka 107 a kan albashinsa, 86 daga cikinsu a baya suna aiki a gwamnatin tarayya. Ma'aikatan Comcast da kwamitin aikin su na siyasa (PAC) ciyar $3,183,117 akan zaɓen tarayya a 2012; sun kashe ƙarin $1,346,410 a cikin zagayowar 2014. Comcast's PAC yana da bayar da gudummawa ga kowane memba guda na kwamitin da ke kula da hadakar; Schumer ne ke jagorantar Sanatocin da dala 35,000, sannan Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) na biye da shi kan dala 32,500 sai kuma Sanata Orrin Hatch (R-UT) a kan dala 30,000. Franken, wanda ke sukar haɗin gwiwar, bai sami komai ba a cikin 'yan shekarun nan amma ya sami $5,000 daga Comcast's PAC don asusun sake ƙidaya a 2009. Wannan ya zo a saman. fiye da miliyan daloli da aka bayar ga kwamitocin jam’iyya a shekarar 2012, kuma an bayar da dubban daruruwan a 2014.
Bayan babban kashe kuɗi a yakin siyasa da ɗaukar hayar ɗimbin masu fafutuka, Comcast yana da ƙarin kayan aikin da yawa a cikin bel ɗin kayan aiki. Babban mai ba da gudummawa ne ga ƙungiyoyin sa-kai da tankunan tunani waɗanda ke ba da ɗimbin ƙima a shawarwarin manufofi. Misali, ta tallafa wa Gidauniyar Heritage Foundation, mai tunani mafi kusa da Jam’iyyar Republican, da kuma Cibiyar Ci Gaban Amirka, wanda ke kusa da Democrat. Babu dai a hukumance da ya yi magana kan hadewar ko fitar da takardun manufofin da ke hana 'yan majalisa goyon bayansa. Bulogin Gidauniyar Heritage ko da gabatar da wani post da'awar "wannan yarjejeniyar tayi nisa da barazanar da masu suka suka nuna." Sauran ƙungiyoyin sa-kai sun ɗauki sautin taka tsantsan. Majalisar kasa ta La Raza, wadda ta samu $350,000 daga Comcast's philanthropic foundation a cikin 2011, fitar da wani sirrin magana tare da wasu ƙungiyoyin Hispanic da dama suna faɗin cewa "yana fatan sanya waɗannan kamfanoni cikin tattaunawa mai ƙarfi game da wannan ciniki da kuma yadda hakan zai shafi al'ummominmu."
Wataƙila babban kayan aikin tasiri wanda Comcast ke da shi shine daular watsa labarai ta kansa. Bayan haɗewarsa da NBCUniversal, Comcast yanzu ya mallaki cibiyoyin sadarwa kamar CNBC da MSNBC, wasu cibiyoyin sadarwar da aka saba juya zuwa ga rahoton kasuwanci da lissafin kamfanoni. A cikin tattaunawar labarai game da wannan haɗin gwiwa, ba zai tafi ba tare da faɗi cewa waɗannan cibiyoyin sadarwa za su kasance da kyau ba.
Ba a iya doke su ba
Kodayake Comcast da Time Warner Cable suna da alama suna riƙe da katunan da yawa, ba lallai ba ne hannun da ba za a iya doke su ba. Yaushe lobbying giant AT&T ya nemi siyan T-Mobile, ƴan jarida da masu fafutukar yaƙi da amana sun yi yaƙi da baya, nasarar kashe mutane dalar Amurka biliyan 39. Yaƙin neman zaɓe na wannan haɗin gwiwa zai iya tabbatar da abin koyi ga waɗanda ke ƙoƙarin yaƙar Comcast a yau, kuma akwai alamun akwai riga. m hadin gwiwa a shirye don yin takara don ƙirƙirar wannan sabon tsarin mulki. Wannan haɗin gwiwar ya haɗa da ba kawai ƙungiyoyi masu ci gaba kamar MoveOn da Ƙungiyar Mata ta Ƙasa ba amma har da Ƙungiyar Iyali ta Amirka da Ƙungiyar Tea Party. Tare da abubuwa da yawa a kan gungumen azaba, wannan babban taro na iya kasancewa duk abin da ke tsakanin dubun-dubatar Amurkawa da kuma babban abin da ya shafi talabijin da shiga yanar gizo.
Zaid Jilani shine marubucin bincike kuma mai fafutukar neman Kwamitin Yakin Neman Sauyi na Ci gaba. Shi ne tsohon babban mai ba da rahoto-blogger don ThinkProgress.
ZNetwork ana samun kuɗi ta hanyar karimcin masu karatun sa.
Bada Tallafi