The U.S. Justice Department is investigating AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) for allegedly obstructing consumers from changing wireless carriers, according to
The New York Times.
The DOJ suspects possible collusion with a telecommunication standards group to lock clients into their respective networks by
thwarting eSIM technology, which allows the remote switch of wireless providers without SIM-card transfers.
Why It’s Important
The investigation, which has been ongoing for the last five months, does not help AT&T as it resists an
antitrust suit to close an $85.4-billion Time Warner Inc (NYSE: TWX) acquisition.
Shares plunged on the Friday afternoon report, with Verizon down 1.6 percent and
AT&T 1 percent at one point. Time Warner and Sprint Corp (NYSE: S) also fell. T-Mobile Us Inc (NASDAQ: TMUS) moved on the news as well.
What’s Next
If the DOJ finds evidence of antitrust operations, it could file a lawsuit against the offending entities. The timeline and
progress of its investigation is yet unknown.
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