WYWO: AT&T/BellSouth a done deal

So while you weren't paying attention, the FCC approved the AT&T/BellSouth merger. When we last left this cliffhanger, the commission's general counsel said it was OK for abstemious commissioner Robert McDowell to vote, even though he'd been a lobbyist for Comptel, which normally takes anti-AT&T positions. McDowell, however, continued to sit out the votes. What finally moved the dial, the Thursday before New Year's, was a set of promises from AT&T, primary among them was a vow to abide by the rules of network neutrality--to treat all traffic on its network from all parties to all parties equally. In response, the two Democratic commissioners changed their votes from Nay to Aye, and the $86 billion merger was approved 4-0 (McDowell abstaining). Sharp-eyed observers, however, spotted a loophole in AT&T's agreement: the neutrality promise lasts for two years and extends to the network in place now, not AT&T's coming IPTV network. The merger's a go, but net neutrality is anything but a dead issue this year.

For more information about the FCC's approval:
- read this article from DSL Prime