It's been a step behind in getting the iPhone which should be remedied soon, but the yellow carrier is also facing a mega-merger between AT&T and T-Mobile that would drop it way below the competition.
In recent weeks, the Russian Academy of Sciences has faced a forced merger, the appointment of a new overlord with no background in science, and now, a painful downsizing: At least 30% of the academy's roughly 55,000 researchers are expected to be laid off in 2014.
Facing a possible delay in the merger, the NYSE settled a lawsuit brought by ten disgruntled seat holders who claim the exchange didn't get a fair opinion in the deal because its investment bankers were too conflicted.
Mr. Anderson said Neelie Kroes, Mr. Almunia's immediate predecessor, blocked only two mergers during her term but explained that Mr. Almunia has been facing "a relatively low number of mergers but many in already concentrated markets with complex issues" compared to the docket examined by Ms. Kroes.
"We are faced with a merger that is born from a revolution that is in its infancy, and the merger's great promise and possible dangers rest principally in the future -- a future that changes rapidly and often unpredictably," said Michael Powell, a commissioner.
T-Mobile, after missing out on the iPhone 4S this autumn and with its merger with AT&T facing a block by the Department of Justice, already has pay-as-you-go, no-contract plans, and they appear to be looking at even more non-traditional sources of revenue with these new plans.
Deal makers powered ahead, even as one pending merger faced a regulatory hurdle.
The merger plan faces a regulatory review by antitrust authorities in the United States and Europe.
This week the stock market fell to a three-month low on the news that Yukos faced a court challenge to its merger with Sibneft, a smaller firm, and that the two firms would soon lose tax breaks.
