December 12, 2009
Get out the muzzles — it's going to get rough
Antitrust Laws. A dim light goes off...something about fair play, ethics and not trying to control the universe. Believe it or not, a few clear cut components actually comprise this convoluted body of laws known as antitrust. But one of them, the need to protect consumers' wallets against a power-wielding oligopoly, always manages to butt up against free market ideals and entrepreneurs who want to secure enough wiggle room to grow forever. They argue that too many constraints can retard growth, stifle motivation, kill vision and dampen drive. And...bummer, they argue that the global marketplace with its competitive products, services, workers and R&D departments, can drastically dullen our edge. We need Goliaths that can slay. Antitrust laws, if pressed, could ruin us.
So, does anyone really flinch when the number one cable and broadband internet company in the country makes a move to gobble up the nation's (not #1) broadcast television station? Maybe, if Comcast had made a move to gobble up Fox, which owns the #1 cable news network, someone would have barked.
Oh, but regulators have barked at the Comcast-Universal deal. And Comcast knew they would bark. But for some reason, maybe because of all the barking without biting, Comcast plows ahead. After all, didn't regulators bark when AOL wanted to buy Time Warner? Wasn't there a flash of noise when J.P. Morgan Chase wanted to eat Washington Mutual?
In the wake of so many octopussal conglomerates that make it difficult to keep track of Who's Who in the world of business ownership, the "federal regulator antitrust investigations" feel like fraternity hazings. Corporate executives get whacked and then welcomed to the Massive Mergers Club. NBC, to be honest, is in the "television" business (read analog). That's different from Comcast, which is in the "cable" business (read digital). Forget about the analog-to-digital TV switch that blended American households into one century. These two companies, executives will argue, won't stifle competition or lead to price gouging. And let's look at the condition of each. This is the kind of merger that has a caretaker component — NBC is sick and Comcast makes a good nurse. Besides, it's a brand new world out there that's raining financial ash. Any alliance that strengthens is an alliance that's good.
Look Who's Barking
National Amusements
owns
Showcase Cinemas, Cinema De Lux, MTV, VH-1, BET, Nickelodeon, Paramount, CBS, Simon & Shuster
Procter & Gamble, the consumer goods giant and 8th largest corporation in the world
gobbles
Gillette, personal hygiene products company, creating the biggest personal care and hygiene products shop on the globe.
No bite: done deal on October 1, 2005 for $57 billion; Small nip: P&G had to agree to spin-off a few of its brands.
Pfizer, the largest seller of pharmaceutical drugs
gobbles
Wyeth, its rival, global leader in pharmaceuticals, consumer and animal health care, creating a pharmaceutical behemoth.
No bite: done deal on October 29, 2009 for $67 billion.
Live Nation, the live events giant that acts as a concert promoter
romps with
Ticketmaster, the giant ticket sales and distribution company.
Biting and nipping in the US: pending deal to solidify the two into Live Nation Entertainment, a concert promoter, ticket sales agent giant.
Bitten in the UK: deal provisionally nixed in October 2009. NewsSip
Photo Credits: Barking Dog by SequereMe; Mini Poodle by Afren; Chihuahua by Danielle deLeon; Afghan Hound by tanakawho; Japanese Chin by Alex Archambault
