Telecom Consolidation Under Trump 2.0: Bad News for Consumers
Mergers promise innovation, but history suggests higher prices and worse service are on the horizon.
Despite promises of populism, the second Trump administration is shaping up to be a boon for telecom giants, paving the way for further consolidation that could lead to increased broadband costs and declining service quality for consumers.
Mergers on the Horizon
Following through on a promise to be more racist, Verizon recently had its $20 billion merger with Frontier approved by the Trump FCC. There are also rumors that Comcast is considering a merger with T-Mobile. Furthermore, cable giant Charter is pursuing a $34.5 billion merger with Cox Communications.
Despite the potential negative impacts, telecom companies argue that these mergers will somehow increase competition. Charter CEO Chris Winfrey stated:
“This combination will augment our ability to innovate and provide high-quality, competitively priced products, delivered with outstanding customer service, to millions of homes and businesses,”–Chris Winfrey, CEO of Charter
Winfrey also claimed, “We will continue to deliver high-value products that save American families money, and we’ll onshore jobs from overseas to create new, good-paying careers for U.S. employees.”
History Repeats Itself
Past experience suggests that telecom consolidation dose not benefit consumers. Rather, merged companies frequently enough wield increased political power, using it to stifle competition and evade regulatory oversight. Such as, Charter nearly faced expulsion from New York State for repeatedly misleading regulators about meeting obligations tied to its merger with Time Warner Cable.
Such mergers primarily benefit stock valuations and provide tax cuts for the wealthy, while the negative consequences for the public are frequently enough ignored by a consolidated corporate press and captured regulators. According to a recent report, the average American household spends over $100 per month on internet service, one of the highest rates in the developed world (statista 2024).
Dismantling Oversight
Trump 2.0 is not only encouraging harmful consolidation but also weakening regulatory autonomy and corporate oversight. This approach reflects a long-held belief among right-wingers and Libertarians that unchecked monopolization leads to positive outcomes, a claim that is demonstrably false.
Allowing telecom giants like Verizon and Comcast to expand while dismantling government oversight enables them to exploit regional monopolies, inflate prices, undermine small businesses, and fraudulently obtain taxpayer subsidies. The same pattern is emerging in media, with companies like Time Warner Discovery seeking further consolidation under Trump, resulting in lower-quality journalism, higher prices, and a surge of corporatist propaganda.
A Broken System Made Worse
The U.S. broadband landscape is characterized by regional monopolies, supported by corrupt lawmakers who have systematically eliminated competition.The current administration is exacerbating this problem by aligning it with authoritarian agendas,possibly leading to even more exploitative practices in exchange for promises of increased racism and poor service.
