UPDATE 1-Appeals court to hear U.S. Justice Dept objection to AT&T deal on Dec. 6

The merged company includes CNN, a cable news station that is a frequent target of President Donald Trump's ire.

Devdiscourse News Desk | Updated: 18-10-2018 05:59 IST | Created: 18-10-2018 01:28 IST

UPDATE 1-Appeals court to hear U.S. Justice Dept objection to AT&T deal on Dec. 6 — AT&T has said it would manage Time Warner’s Turner cable television networks as part of a separate business unit until February 2019 or the conclusion of the government's appeal. (Image Credit: Flickr)

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A U.S. appeals court will hear oral arguments on Dec. 6 in the Justice Department's fight against AT&T Inc's $85.4 billion purchase of Time Warner, the court said on Wednesday.

The merger, which was announced in October 2016, closed on June 14 after a U.S. district court ruled the deal was legal under the antitrust law. The Justice Department has asked a federal appeals court to reverse that approval.

The core of the Justice Department’s concern is that AT&T, which owns DirecTV, would use its ownership of Time Warner’s content to make pay-TV rivals pay more, thus raising their costs and forcing them to charge consumers more. The merged company includes CNN, a cable news station that is a frequent target of President Donald Trump's ire.

AT&T has said it would manage Time Warner’s Turner cable television networks as part of a separate business unit until February 2019 or the conclusion of the government's appeal.

(With inputs from agencies.)