There are four major providers of national cellphone service in the U.S – Verizon, AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile.  Two of them are proposing to merge.  What impact will the merger have on consumers?  Senator Herbert Kohl (of Kohl’s stores fame) says:

“According to Consumer Reports, ‘T-Mobile plans typically cost $15 to $50 per month less than comparable plans from AT&T.” Removal of such a maverick price competitor from such a highly concentrated market – a competitor that disciplines price increases from all three other national cell phone competitors, not only At&T – raises a substantial likelihood that prices will rise following this merger.”

Someone can take the opposite view to ATT-TM LT to DOJ and FCC but at least it is coherently argued.