Correct Response: D. Antitrust legislation is designed to promote fair competition by preventing monopolies. A merger of the nation's largest and third-largest telecommunications companies would create a company that could eliminate all competition and eventually become the sole provider of communication services. This would likely have harmful effects on consumer prices and reduce or slow innovation in the communications industry. Federal antitrust legislation would mostly likely apply in this case and the Federal Trade Commission and/or Department would intervene to prevent the merger.
Accusation of inside trading of stocks falls under the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) (A), which is a separate agency. And initial public offering (IPO) is a type of public offering of a company's stock and does not fall under federal antitrust legislation (B). A large company accused of systematically defrauding consumers is considered consumer fraud, not a violation of antitrust legislation (C).
