Team Formed to Review EchoStar-DirecTV Deal

U.S. media regulators named a team to review EchoStar Communications Corp.’s $29-billion purchase of larger rival DirecTV, a signal that the union of the biggest satellite-television companies will be swiftly evaluated.

It is an unusual step by Federal Communications Commission Chairman Michael K. Powell, given that EchoStar hasn’t yet applied to buy DirecTV’s parent, Hughes Electronics Corp., from General Motors Corp.

Powell has vowed to approve or reject mergers quickly to give financial markets more clarity on decisions. EchoStar would control more than 90% of satellite-TV subscribers, raising concern that consumers might see higher prices and less choice.

FCC Cable Bureau Chief Kenneth Ferree, who will head the FCC’s planned Media Bureau, will lead the review.

Antitrust officials must also conduct a review, which lawyers expect to be done by the Department of Justice rather than the Federal Trade Commission.