AA and B6 lose trial. NEA must end.

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“Multiple potential outcomes remain for the NEA. Both companies have made statements disagreeing with the judge’s decision and an appeal is possible. Appealing the decision may also allow for a stay to the judge’s original timeline, which would at least allow the partnership to be unwound in an orderly manner, and not during the height of the summer travel season. We could also see a scaled-down version of the NEA, where American and JetBlue agree to some degree of cooperation without the full revenue sharing and schedule coordination of the original agreement. Fitch views a full and abrupt unwinding of the NEA as a more impactful but less likely scenario.
In Fitch’s view, the judge’s ruling in the NEA case also casts some doubt on JetBlue’s acquisition of Spirit Airlines (B+/Stable). One of JetBlue’s main arguments is that purchasing Spirit will allow it to gain scale and compete more effectively with the four large U.S. carriers. However, the judge’s ruling specifically pushes back against similar arguments made by JetBlue and American in the NEA case”
 
So, AT&T is an airline?

Maybe reading isn't one if your strengths.

But since you mentioned it... it's true AT&T was broken up into eight separate companies in 1984 after being found to be a monopoly... Within 20 years, six of those companies that were spun out had merged back to become an even bigger company via SBC rebranded as AT&T. The other two became what's now Verizon.

The track record of letting government pick winners and losers seems to indicate that the consumer loses.

In a parallel industry, there's a very long list of railroad mergers that were blocked by the Surface Transportation Board or the Department of Justice. Just about every one of those wound up in a bankruptcy for one of the railroads trying to merge. A merger between the Milwaukee Road with the Chicago North Western was blocked, and the MILW eventually collapses and was gobbled up by the Soo and later the Canadian Pacific (today now merging with the Kansas City Southern). The Rock Island tried to merge with the Union Pacific, but was blocked. The Rock went bankrupt, wound up with the Chicago North Western, which in turn was bought by.... the Union Pacific. The Southern Pacific and Santa Fe were so ready to merge they started painting locomotives in a new post-merger paint before the merger was approved. It wasn't approved, so the paint came off quickly. The Santa Fe wound up with the Burlington Northern, creating an even bigger combination than what the SF+SP would have been. The Southern Pacific wound up close to bankruptcy, and eventually merged with.... the Union Pacific. The story on the east coast is even worse. Remember Conrail?... A bunch of railroad bankruptcies combined with government interfering and forcing six railroads into one company that was eventually broken up in two and sold off to the Norfolk Southern and CSX.

Instead of having a dozen merged railroads some 25 years ago, we now have essentially four railroads plus the two Canadian railroads that bought up their partners in the US. Tens of thousands of jobs were lost with all those bankrupcies and fire sale acquisitions.

Yea, Government Interference!

Not.
 
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I'm sure they could, but I think it comes down to whether or not JetBlue wants to acquire Spirit or continue to be the lesser partner in an agreement with American.

Ultimately, I think getting the merger approved is a much bigger priority.
 
The government in my opinion stopped enforcing fair trade a long time ago.

These companies merge and merge and merge until there are only a few big players.

If AT&T existed today as it did before the "Baby Bells" I am sure the government would just let it be.

It's sickening.

What is even more sickening is when government money is used to prop up a private enterprise all but eliminating their competition by creating an unfair market advantage. See Amtrak.

From Google.

Amtrak is a federally chartered corporation, with the federal government as majority stockholder. The Amtrak Board of Directors is appointed by the President of the United States and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Amtrak is operated as a for-profit company, rather than a public authority.
 
The Federal government is the only shareholder of any consequence for.Amtrak.

There were common shares issued in 1971 to a handful of railroads who didn't want the tax break alternative. But they're effectively worthless in that there's no dividend or voting rights attached to the common shares.