I realize this is old news. However, I was on vacation for a few days since then, and really needed some time to let the gravity of it all sink in. I think this deal is absolutely horrible for the consumer. I know I’m not alone in that sentiment (99.9% of consumers likely agree), so let me give some deeper perspective.
Here’s what I think will happen as a result of this joining of forces. Papa Bear (Comcast) will:
- Bring in Consulting Firm ABC* because they have “wealth of knowledge” of TWC infrastructure
- Allow ABC to do 12-18 months of “current state analysis” to isolate gaps, dependencies, or similarities
- Bite off on ABC’s recommendation to let ABC chew over the fundamental differences for another 18-24 months and conduct mass quantities of stakeholder interviews
- Receive a proposal for how the new landscape should look and where the key integration points (people, process, technology, etc) are
- Receive a (similar) proposal for the number of dollars it will take for ABC to “help along the way”
- Altogether (~4 years later at this point) pay ungodly sums of money for implementation/integration of the companies to never come to fruition
- Keep the companies operating as virtually-separate entities, with shared processes for minute activities where consolidation was a no-brainer
- Pass on costs directly to consumers who will be handcuffed to Papa Bear’s services
In an upcoming post I plan to give a brief, humorous idea I have on how this Post-Merger-Integration could work better. It’s 90% sarcasm, 10% truth.
Til Next Time,
Michael
*I have a feeling I know who firm ABC is too, and in my opinion: Uh Oh.