A U.S. judge set a Feb. 13 start for a trial over whether AT&T Inc (T.N) can purchase rival T-Mobile USA, a compromise between the companies' desire for a quick resolution and the Justice Department's request for more time to prepare its case. U.S. District Judge Ellen Huvelle on Wednesday set aside up to six weeks for the trial in response to the Obama administration's antitrust lawsuit against the deal. She will preside without a jury, as is typical for such cases. There was no discussion of any settlement to avoid trial during the 80-minute preliminary hearing. The Justice Department sued last month to block AT&T's $39 billion purchase of T-Mobile, owned by Deutsche Telekom AG (DTEGn.DE), arguing it would raise prices for consumers and hamper competition and innovation.
AT&T Inc. is a holding company. The Company is a provider of telecommunications services in the United States and worldwide. Shares of T fell by 1.91% or $-0.55/share to $28.30. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $27.20 and as high as $31.94. On average, 30607200 shares of T exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 25852294.
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