Netflix officials have written a letter to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) asking them to block AT&T's recent purchase of DirecTV.
The on-demand internet media company claims that AT&T is likely to implement limits on bandwidth and data that could make online streaming more expensive in order to protect its DirecTV investment.
"AT&T's investment in a business model that profits by selling bundled programming packages will result in a powerful incentive to protect that model," Netflix says in the letter, according to the New York Times.
Although AT&T officials have not commented on the letter, they assured reporters that the company addressed Netflix's claim in their FCC review process. Additionally, Netflix officials are not asking the FCC to completely reject the purchase, but rather to temporarily block it until modifications are made to the terms of agreement.
"While we are participating in the government's review, we are not opposing the merger," Netflix spokeswoman Anne Marie Squeo said in a statement, according to Reuters.
"We've been highlighting concerns about AT&T's broadband practices and the need for appropriate remedies since last September."
Netflix's stock was recently raised by Bank of America from a "underperform" status to "buy," given recent gains in long-term subscribership. The financial institution also rose Netflix's price target to $722 per share from $350, according to CNBC.
Netflix was founded in 1997.
