Source familiar with proposed merger of AT&T Broadband and Comcas...

prepared to hold hearing Tues. (today) on proposed merger. In recent weeks, Council for Institutional Investors and N.Y.C. Comptroller William Thompson complained to SEC about merged company’s corporate governance provisions as they were described in preliminary proxy statements sent to investors. Among provisions that raised objections was plan not to hold elections until 2005. Source said companies now were considering pushing elections up to 2004. AT&T CEO Michael Armstrong and Comcast Pres. Brian Roberts are among those scheduled to testify at hearing of Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition and Business & Consumer Rights. Meanwhile, Consumer Federation of America and Computer & Communications Industry Assn. were planning to try to steal some thunder from corporate executives touting merger. CFA and CCIA, which weren’t invited to subcommittee hearing, planned to hold press briefing beforehand to release their study exposing what they called “myth of cross-technology competition” and FCC’s hopes that intermodal competition would influence cable’s market power. “The proposed Comcast merger would create the nation’s largest cable company, threatening competition and further weakening consumers’ choice,” groups said in written statement. One competitor, BellSouth, also got out front, saying in statement that regulatory disparity between cable and phone companies didn’t serve public interest. In meantime, BellSouth Vp-Govt. Affairs Herschel Abbott said, consumers wouldn’t be served by “creating a behemoth” that would dominate market for high- speed Internet service. AT&T spokesman responded to BellSouth’s criticism by saying combined AT&T Broadband- Comcast would further challenge BellSouth’s dominance of local telephone service “and weaken the monopoly they hold so dear.”