Understanding the AT&T Takeover of T-Mobile

By now, you've probably heard the widespread consumer disappointment over AT&T's proposed merger with T-Mobile. To hear the company tell it, they're only trying to make good on the Federal Communication Commission's plan to expand high-speed Internet access to underserved and rural areas.The telecommunications giant, for its reportedly shoddy service and reluctant approach to innovation (spoofed to perfection by Jon Stewart after its competitor Verizon began selling the iPhone), announced its plans to acquire the much smaller T-Mobile over the weekend. The move would create what would easily become the largest telecommunications company in the country, and make a market that already lacks any serious competition even smaller.

Here are three key points that you should know.

Just how big is this potential merger?

Massive. AT&T would pay $39 billion to create what some have dubbed the "Mega-Merger of Doom." But seriously, the implications are huge: The nation's two largest mobile carriers, AT&T and Verizon, would control 70 percent of the market,...

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