Washington state OKs CenturyLink-Qwest, FCC advances

The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission has approved the CenturyLink-Qwest merger, leaving Oregon as the only state whose regulators still need to approve the deal. Meanwhile, the federal Communications Commission appeared close to voting on the merger after FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski reportedly presented the deal and potential merger conditions to commissioners for approval.

Washington state regulators unanimously approved the merger, a move that already had been recommended by its staff, with five separate multi-party settlement agreements attached. These settlements, some of which were modified by the UTC to add more deal conditions, are still open to objection by the companies involved for another 15 days, the commission said.

The UTC’s deal conditions include:
* Capping local telephone residential rates for at least three years after the sale closes
* Requiring the combined company to make an $80 million investment in broadband so high-speed Internet service will be available to more Washington consumers
* Preventing the new company from passing on merger costs to ratepayers
* Reporting merger savings and cost-cutting measures to the UTC
* Reducing the new company’s fees charged to other carriers which should help lower long-distance rates for calls made within the state
* Submitting detailed plans to UTC staff before transitioning to any new computer operating systems that affect customer services like billing or filling new phone orders

Washington state’s approval of the merger comes after Minnesota and Arizona regulators approved the deal in recent weeks. The Wall Street Journal reported that the FCC had posted notice indicating movement toward considering the deal in the coming days. CenturyLink and Qwest have been hoping to close the deal by April 1 if all the necessary regulatory approvals are in hand by then, but it remains unclear exactly when the FCC will act.