5 Things About AT&T's Merger with T-Mobile

The merger of AT&T and T-Mobile has made national headlines. So, too, has the cell tower that will be erected soon by T-Mobile in the borough on St. Matthew's Church property.

Currently, the Federal Communications Commission is reviewing whether or not it will allow the deal. Here are "5 Things" you should know about it: 

1. Verizon is the most popular cell provider in our area, but AT&T and T-Mobile are both in the country's top five cell providers. Some say the merger could lead to higher service prices because there would be less competition. According to AT&T, cell company mergers have traditionally lowered prices.

2. T-Mobile plans to build a cell tower in New Milford. T-Mobile began the process of obtaining needed variances for this project in 2008 and now three years later, after a court battle, the tower is about to be built.

3. Sprint recently filed to block the merger. Industry experts say that Sprint doesn't want them to merge because it would create a "duopoly" leaving only Verizon and AT&T at the top of the market, crushing competition for those below them.

4. Cell phones may cause cancer in the long term, according to the World Health Organization. However, WHO also reported that, even though cell phones are classified as possibly carcinogenic, adequate testing has not yet been done to say cell phones definitely cause cancer. The merger would not change this, but it's good to keep in mind.

5. Cell phones use far more data than ever before. Because phones now connect to the Internet, online activity is expected to increase by 26 times by 2015, resulting in 75 exabytes of data each year. (We're not sure how much that is, but it sure sounds like A LOT!)