Trump Fallout on Telecom Policy Already Felt, Expected to Grow, Analysts Say

Donald's Trump's presidency will have an even bigger impact on telecom/cable regulation than his November victory did, Bank of America Merrill Lynch cable/satellite analysts wrote investors Wednesday. The Republican election sweep forced Democratic FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler to abandon efforts to push through new rules on cable set-top boxes and telecom business data services, they noted. The post-inauguration regulatory impact "will be even more significant as the President-elect's administration is reportedly interested in: (1) reshaping the FCC into a more streamlined agency that better reflects convergence; (2) re-working the Open Internet Order; and (3) re-writing the 1996 Telecommunications Act," they wrote. "The new FCC and potential for a re-working of the Open Internet Order would eliminate the significant overhang of rate regulation and also reduce uncertainty." A note by Bank of America Merrill Lynch telecom equipment analysts said the new administration "appears likely to drive spending on infrastructure & cyber security" and promote "an offshore cash repatriation holiday and a broad reduction of the corporate tax rate, ie from 35% to 20%." They expect a Republican rollback of net neutrality to drive increased capital expenditure for service providers, to the benefit of equipment providers such as Cisco and others.