CenturyLink has agreed to pay $275,000 to settle allegations in an antitrust case relating to the firm’s business practices stemming from the acquisition of Level 3 Communications.
On Thursday, the US Department of Justice (DoJ) said that CenturyLink, now known as Lumen Technologies, will pay to settle a civil contempt claim issued by the DoJ.
CenturyLink acquired Level 3 in 2016 for $34 billion in cash and stock, merging two telecoms, networking, and data center giants in the enterprise space. Lumen generated revenues of over $20 billion in 2020.
In order to preserve competition when acquisitions of this size and significance take place, US watchdogs preside heavily over how they are managed and completed. In the CenturyLink-Level 3 case, the DoJ claims that CenturyLink has been a “repeat offender” in failing to comply with court-ordered competition obligations.
Specifically, the DoJ claims that CenturyLink flouted orders concerning anti-competitive practices, including a non-solicitation provision that barred the firm from sending marketing emails to customers that chose to move away from CenturyLink.
CenturyLink was temporarily ordered to not contact customers in the area that chose to move their business to the buyer of assets divested during the acquisition.
However, over 100 emails were still sent to individuals in the Boise City, Idaho area, according to a petition filed in a Washington DC federal court by the department’s Antitrust Division.
The DoJ asked the court to find CenturyLink in civil contempt of the order, and at the same time, also filed a proposed settlement agreement and order. In a final judgment, the non-solicitation period has also been extended for two years.
The courts must approve the order. If accepted, CenturyLink will pay $275,000 within 30 days (.PDF) to the US government, which includes the cost of the investigation.
“The request for a finding of civil contempt is appropriate because the company violated its amended obligations immediately after the court imposed them,” commented Acting Assistant Attorney General Richard Powers of the DoJ’s Antitrust Division. “When companies fail to comply with court-ordered obligations, the Antitrust Division will take action to enforce them.”
ZDNet has reached out to Lumen for comment and we will update when we hear back.
Previous and related coverage
Have a tip? Get in touch securely via WhatsApp | Signal at +447713 025 499, or over at Keybase: charlie0
Stay connected with us on social media platform for instant update click here to join our Twitter, & Facebook
We are now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@TechiUpdate) and stay updated with the latest Technology headlines.
For all the latest Technology News Click Here
For the latest news and updates, follow us on Google News.
Denial of responsibility! NewsAzi is an automatic aggregator around the global media. All the content are available free on Internet. We have just arranged it in one platform for educational purpose only. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, all materials to their authors. If you are the owner of the content and do not want us to publish your materials on our website, please contact us by email – [email protected]. The content will be deleted within 24 hours.
