Comcast’s proposed $45.2-billion acquisition of Time Warner Cable has been criticized by angry customers, consumer advocacy groups, and even some members of Congress.
But Comcast has plenty of support, too, much of it from politicians and organizations that benefit from its political and charitable donations. With the deadline to submit initial comments on the merger to the Federal Communications Commission set to expire Monday, a number of elected officials and charities have urged the FCC to think favorably of Comcast during its merger review.
Charities supporting the acquisition include the Greater Washington Urban League, the Urban League of Broward County in Florida, the Boys and Girls Club of Rockford, Illinois, and the United Way of Tucson in Arizona. "Comcast has dedicated itself to advancing organizations like ours through financial support and partnerships," the Greater Washington Urban League wrote.
Comcast fans also come from political organizations. The Democratic Governors Association asked the FCC “to consider Comcast’s impressive body of work and all that they do in helping strengthen the middle class and investing in our nation’s infrastructure.”
Comcast gave $225,000 to the Democratic Governors Association this year, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. The group includes the governors of Vermont, New Hampshire, California, Montana, New York, Colorado, Washington, Delaware, Maryland, and Illinois. Comcast is a prolific donor, giving money even to politicians and organizations who criticize the company.
“On behalf of the Democratic Governors Association (DGA), I am writing to emphasize the crucial role Comcast Corporation has played in business and communities all across America,” Executive Director Colm O’Comartun wrote to the FCC. “Comcast’s record of infrastructure innovation helps residents and businesses meet the constantly evolving challenges of the 21st century. The company has invested billions in technology improvements over the last 20 years. These improvements benefit all of their customers and improve the playing field for other citizens through the American spirit of competition for service excellence. In the years ahead, Comcast will work to strengthen the mission of supporting an economy built to last in every state.”
Similarly, an FCC filing from the Pennsylvania State Mayors’ Association mentioned only Comcast’s positive attributes without acknowledging the horrid customer service experiences many Comcast subscribers complain about.
“As the mayor of Whitehall Borough, Pennsylvania, and the president of the Pennsylvania State Mayors’ Association, I have had the opportunity to observe and interact with Comcast,” James Nowalk wrote to the FCC yesterday under the Mayors’ Association letterhead. “In my opinion, Comcast has been an exceptional corporate sponsor which has given substantial support to my municipality and mayoral association.”
Nowalk pointed to Comcast offering affordable Internet access to students, concluding that “For all of the above reasons, I would urge you to consider the proposed transaction between Comcast and Time Warner Cable.”
There's also a letter from 52 mayors nationwide supporting the deal. Politicians are borrowing talking points from Comcast and, in at least one case, borrowed Comcast’s actual words. As Stop the Cap wrote last week, New York State Assembly Leader Joe Morelle copied entire sentences from a Comcast letter to state regulators.
Low-income Internet key to Comcast support
Both the Democratic Governors Association and Pennsylvania State Mayors’ Association pointed to Comcast’s Internet Essentials program that provides $10-per-month Internet access to low-income families. Comcast agreed to create the program in order to secure approval of its 2011 acquisition of NBCUniversal.
Comcast would extend Internet Essentials to TWC customers if the merger is approved, but the cheap Internet plan could be ended in some of Comcast’s territory. That’s because Comcast plans to spin off part of its network to a new company that will operate independently and won’t necessarily be obligated to continue Internet Essentials (see page 19, footnote 38 in this Comcast congressional testimony). The service areas Comcast will divest are in Alabama, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wisconsin.
Illinois State Rep. Fred Crespo, a Democrat, praised Internet Essentials while throwing his support behind the merger. (Comcast is keeping a large majority of its territory in Illinois, including Crespo’s district.)
“In Illinois, this program has helped bring Internet access at home to tens of thousands,” he wrote. “Comcast and NBC Universal have also invested in scholarships, grants, volunteer hours and programs like Digital Connectors, and this commitment to community partnerships gives me great optimism… I witnessed the vast community improvements that came with the Comcast and NBC Universal partnership, and I can only imagine the positive benefits that will result from expanded presence of those companies under the proposed agreement."
Comcast gave Crespo $14,000 between 2006 and 2012, according to the National Institute on Money in State Politics.
Illinois State Rep. Brandon Phelps, a Democrat, also wrote in support of the merger. Phelps didn’t mention Internet Essentials in his letter, but he praised “Comcast’s ongoing commitment to a free and open Internet” and wrote, “the additional economic opportunities a combined Comcast and Time Warner Cable could generate are exciting to think about.” Phelps' district at the southern tip of Illinois is not served by Comcast, but he received $4,000 from the company in 2011 and 2012, according to the National Institute on Money in State Politics.
Mayor Priscilla Taylor of Palm Beach County in Florida praised Comcast’s Internet Essentials program and other charitable efforts such as “Comcast Cares Day.”
“I am advocating that you would take into consideration the breadth and depth of Comcast’s community investment in Palm Beach county and support the expansion of these efforts through the Comcast and Time Warner Cable transaction,” Taylor wrote to the FCC.
The National Foundation for Women Legislators asked the FCC to approve the merger "so that Comcast can continue to increase diversity and inclusion in the cable industry."
The Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce in Connecticut also supports the deal, in large part due to Comcast’s charitable giving.
“Comcast supports our Business Expo, an event that showcases products and services presented by over 100 local, state and national vendors, as well as our Middletown Summer Youth Employment Program,” Chamber President Larry McHugh wrote to the FCC. “We are also very pleased to have Comcast Regional Vice President for Public Affairs, Kristin Roberts, bring her expertise to our Board of Directors. Comcast's corporate citizenship has also reached beyond the Chamber of Commerce to our entire community, with initiatives such as Comcast Cares Day, the Leaders and Achievers Scholarship Program, and partnerships with Boys and Girls Clubs and Big Brothers Big Sisters. Comcast has proven to be a company that over-delivers on economic impact and civic partnership.”
The FCC comments on the Comcast/TWC merger also include numerous individuals who oppose the deal and criticize poor customer service and what they called Comcast's monopoly power. The Consumers Union and Common Cause yesterday filed a petition to deny the merger, saying it "would harm competition, impede innovation by online video distributors, threaten innovation in equipment and platforms, and reduce the diversity of information sources and services to the public, all to the detriment of consumers and contrary to the public interest."
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