On hold: EU antitrust regulators have halted their scrutiny of Dow Chemical Co. and DuPont’s proposed merger while the companies provide more information regarding their $130 billion deal, Reuters reports. The European Commission opened a full investigation into the case in August, concerned that the deal to create the world’s largest integrated crop protection and seeds company may reduce competition in these sectors as well as certain petrochemicals. “The Commission has stopped the clock in its in-depth investigation into the proposed merger between Dow and Dupont,” a spokesman says. The EU antitrust enforcer will set a new deadline for its investigation once it has received the required data. DuPont and Dow Chemicals, which aim to close the deal in early 2017, had previously offered concessions which regulators say were insufficient. Read the full story.
Slow ride: AT&T is benefiting from providing slow broadband internet service to some poor neighborhoods, CNNMoney reports. The Federal Communications Commission requires AT&T to provide discounted high speed internet service to poor families who are eligible for food stamps. But AT&T is exploiting a loophole in the federal mandate to refuse those discounts to some qualified families. The reason: AT&T says its broadband service in low-income neighborhoods is too slow. The program, known as “Access from AT&T,” costs either either $5 or $10 a month, depending on the speed of AT&T’s service. Those customers who can get service of between 3 and 5 megabits per second only have to pay the $5 fee, while those who can get service with 5 Mbps or faster pay $10. The average broadband speed in the United States is 15 Mbps, according to Akamai. But there are many neighborhoods in which AT&T’s service doesn’t reach even the 3 Mbps level. And people who live in those neighborhoods have to pay full price—an introductory rate of about $30 a month—for the inferior service. Read the full story.
Turbulence: U.S. aviation safety officials took the extraordinary step late Thursday of warning airline passengers not to turn on or charge a new-model Samsung smartphone during flights following numerous reports of the devices catching fire, The Associated Press reports. The Federal Aviation Administration also warned passengers not to put the Galaxy Note 7 phones in their checked bags, citing “recent incidents and concerns raised by Samsung” about the devices. It is extremely unusual for the FAA to warn passengers about a specific product. Read the full story.
