The Court of Appeal will hear the United States Department of Justice's objection to the December 6 AT & T agreement

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A US Court of Appeals will hear arguments on Dec. 6 as part of the Justice Department's fight against AT & T Inc.T.NThe purchase of Time Warner for $ 85.4 billion, announced Wednesday the court.

The merger, announced in October 2016, was closed on June 14 after a US district court found the transaction to be legal under antitrust law. The Department of Justice has asked a federal court of appeal to reverse this approval.

The Department of Justice is concerned that AT & T, the owner of DirecTV, would use its ownership of Time Warner's content to force pay TV competitors to pay more, thereby increasing their costs and forcing them to pay more. consumers. The merged company includes CNN, a cable news channel frequently targeted by President Donald Trump's anger.

AT & T has announced that it will manage Time Warner's Turner Cable Television Networks as part of a separate business unit until February 2019 or until the conclusion of the government's appeal.