Following in the footsteps of Comcast, AT&T plans to buy DirecTV in a move that would further consolidate control over communications into the hands of a few companies.

The nation's No. 2 cell phone provider bought the nation's No. 1 satellite TV provider, reports Buzzfeed. AT&T announced on Sunday, May 18 that DirecTV accepted a deal. AT&T bought DirecTV for $67 billion in a merger of both companies that rivals Comcast's acquisition of Time Warner Cable in both cost and consumer base.

Both companies have agreed on the terms and what remains is only the approval of their respective executive boards. AT&T's move could usher in a new shift in television, since it would add DirecTV's client list to its own expanding list of U-verse fiber customers. It will also give the cell phone provider the possibility of creating bundle packages that would incorporate cellular, landline, broadband and television services, reports Reuters.

"AT&T just upped the ante," said Roger Entner, lead analyst at Recon Analytics, to Reuters, referring to the imminent deal. "They have become an even more integrated telecom provider and are no longer tied to their U-Verse footprint."

The cellular provider tried to purchase T-Mobile USA in 2011 as well as Vodafone Plc. However, these attempts failed and now some economists wonder why AT&T decided on DirecTV. Reuters reports that satellite TV subscriptions have flattened and AT&T has struggled to gain more customers with an increase in competition.

However, as Brian Fung at the Washington Post comments, the merger would still make AT&T a huge company with an even bigger costumer base. Comcast-TWC controls 30 million customers and DirecTV has 20 million, a merger with AT&T would make it a more formidable opponent. However, he adds that there is one more obstacle in AT&T's path: the federal government.

Due to the large size of the merger, both the Federal Communications Commission and the Justice Department would have a say how it affects the Comcast-TWC merger. 

However, as The Guardian reports, the creation of a new massive communications company may be a double-edged sword for consumers. While the merger may give DirecTV access to more customers, and vice versa, it will also shrink competition and competitive prices. Craig Aaron, president of the open-Internet advocacy group Free Press, told The Guardian that the companies are not interested in consumers, just erradicating the competition. 

"The captains of our communications industry have clearly run out of ideas. Instead of innovating and investing in their networks, companies like AT&T and Comcast are simply buying up the competition," he said. "These takeovers are expensive, and consumers end up footing the bill for merger mania.

"For the amount of money and debt AT&T and Comcast are collectively shelling out for their respective mega-deals, they could deploy super-fast gigabit fiber broadband service to every single home in America. This is not about providing better services or even connecting more Americans. It's about eliminating the last shred of competition in a communications sector that's already dominated by too few players."