AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) will be continuing its plan of rolling out high speed internet connection to a targeted number of 2 million homes as per its previous plans, the company said in a clarificatory statement through a letter addressed to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) sent the clarification as the FCC have asked the company to elaborate on a prior statement from its CEO two weeks earlier that AT&T will put a pause to its high speed internet investment to the 100 cities listed in its plans, explaining that it is difficult for the company to gauge the new rules that will govern the new investment. This statement was made after President Obama have sought to regulate internet service providers as a public utility, monitoring the same under more stringent rules.
The company’s announcement of putting on hold additional investments prompted the FCC to press the company for explanations, asking if it would be unprofitable for AT&T to continue its previous plans. The FCC also asked for documents regarding the supposed halt of AT&T’s investment. In response, AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) clarified that the plans it announced earlier in April this year regarding commitments to connect 2 million homes to high speed internet will continue as planned. The company told the FCC, however, that new investments will need a clear direction regarding government policy on the regulator’s end, although it does not say that the president’s proposal will result in unprofitability.
The FCC is currently reviewing AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T)’s merger with DIRECTV (NASDAQ:DTV), a $48.5 billion deal that includes the proposal to provide 2 million homes with high speed internet service. A report by Reuters cites an AT&T spokesman as saying that all investment outside of the commitments made in connection with the DirecTV merger will be halted. The pause affects new potential locations that covers millions of customers.
This article has been written by Nonito Guntan.
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