AT&T and T-Mobile withdraw merger application to the FCC

AT&T and T-Mobile say that they still plan to merge -- but their actions show otherwise. Their application to the FCC was withdrawn -- most likely because they don't want their records to go public in the antitrust lawsuit from the Justice Department.

The report from the NY Times:

From NY Times:

AT&T and T-Mobile USA appeared to edge closer to scrapping their proposed merger, saying on Thursday that they had withdrawn their application to the Federal Communications Commission to join their cellular phone operations.

Deutsche Telekom, the parent of T-Mobile, and AT&T said in a joint statement that they still intended to pursue the $39 billion merger and would prepare for a federal antitrust lawsuit that is seeking to block the deal.

But the companies also said that AT&T planned to take a $4 billion charge against earnings to reflect the potential breakup fees that AT&T would have to pay Deutsche Telekom if the deal failed to go through.

The actions followed the decision earlier this week by Julius Genachowski, the F.C.C. chairman, that the merger did not meet the commission’s standard for approval.

The application withdrawal appears in part designed to prevent the F.C.C. from making public AT&T and T-Mobile records about the potential effects of the merger, records that could then be used by the Justice Department in the antitrust trial.