That was my immediate reaction as well, but as pointed out nearby (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12762415 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12762415),

That was my immediate reaction as well, but as pointed out nearby (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12762415 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12762415), Time Warner Cable != Time Warner, Inc., so this is not a telecom merger. The regulations did have an effect in the 1980s, of course. That was back when there was only one company that did long distance service, and (earlier) you rented, not owned, your home telephone. So long-distance calls were very expensive, and a Big Deal, and you had only one or two phones in your house, because they were so expensive.