Comcast with 23 million television subscribers is offering to buy Time Warner Cable, the second biggest cable TV provider in the US with 11 million subscribers, for $45 billion. The deal needs regulatory approval from the US Federal authorities and both companies are expecting that to occur before the end of the year. If approved, it will make Comcast the country’s dominant provider of TV, Internet and other services to one in every three homes. Comcast will have 30 million customers after making adjustments to comply with expected potential impacts that will be reviewed by the authorities. It will help Comcast to better compete with satellite providers including DirecTV, wireless phone services from AT&T, and streaming services from Netflix. It will also allow Comcast more negotiating power with cable channel owners such as The Walt Disney Company and Time Warner. Time Warner Cable has been separated from Time Warner since 2009 and operating as a separate company.
Time Warner Cable has been losing customers in recent months and received a low score last spring from the American Customer satisfaction Index. It was involved in protracted blackout with CBS and Showtime recently and lost millions of subscribers. Comcast on the other hand has its own software and customers could benefit from a buyout.