Consumers may be losers in an AT&T merger with T-Mobile - CSMonitor.com

It’s no secret that the mobile Internet – smart cellphones and tablets – is a hothouse blossoming with innovation. Every day these devices become more useful (some argue “essential”).

The wireless future isn’t largely about voice calls: It’s about reading (books, newspapers, magazines), shopping, and staying in touch with social networks. Coming soon will be communicating with other devices (such as a car) and even replacing a credit card to make on-the-spot retail purchases.

That’s why federal regulators must take a long, thoughtful look at the proposed merger of wireless carriers AT&T and T-Mobile proposed last week. The merger could threaten the very competition that has benefited consumers and created new opportunities for countless startup companies.

After absorbing T-Mobile, now owned by Deutsche Telekom, AT&T would become the largest cellphone carrier in the US with nearly 40 percent of the market. The current No. 1 carrier, Verizon Wireless, would drop to No. 2 with just over 30 percent.

via csmonitor.com