• Denver Post, Friday, July 21, 2006 1 PM

Anyone who thinks EchoStar and DirecTV are about to merge should remember a Rupert Murdoch-prepared report, "Essential Guide to the Echo-Star/DirecTV Deal," writes Al Lewis in the Denver Post. The report, "a 123-page diatribe," was circulating in 2002 and argued in detail why EchoStar should not be allowed to acquire DirecTV from Hughes Electronics. It called the deal anti-competitive, and said it would result in higher rates for customers, backing its claims with letters from state attorneys general and the National Association of Broadcasters. At the time, EchoStar's Charlie Ergen had outbid Murdoch for DirecTV, fair and square. "But not to be outdone, Murdoch went whining to Washington," says Lewis. And he won. In October 2002, the Federal Communications Commission blocked the deal, and Murdoch later acquired a controlling stake in DirecTV.

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