The telecom giant promised it wouldn't use its merger with Time Warner to hurt consumers. But now it is doing precisely that.
By Tim Wu
HBO has long been the crown jewel of American television. It was HBO, in the 1990s and 2000s, that kick-started the golden age of television, funding and running shows like "The Sopranos" and "The Wire." And it is HBO that still captures broad audiences with shows like "Game of Thrones."
So it's disheartening to see this venerable institution of pop culture wielded as a weapon by AT&T - HBO's new owner since the blockbuster merger in June between AT&T (a telecommunications giant) and Time Warner (a media giant). Last week, HBO went dark for both DISH and DISH-Sling, the main competitors to DirecTV and DirecTV Now, AT&T's television services. This brazenly anticompetitive strategy does not portend a happy future for the viewing public, or for HBO itself.