FTC Delays Vote to Block AOL, Time Warner Merger

The Federal Trade Commission delayed a vote scheduled for Thursday to block AOL's(AOL - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr) planned acquisition of Time Warner(TWX - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr).

According to published reports, the FTC wants more information on the new Internet-access agreement between Time Warner and EarthLink(ELNK - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr) and could seek changes before approving a merger.

A series of meetings are planned this week to go over other contract terms, delaying Thursday's vote. Representatives from the companies were unavailable for comment.

Federal regulators, as a condition for approving the AOL-Time Warner merger, have required Time Warner to provide open access to its cable system to competing Internet service providers like EarthLink.

Under the terms of a draft settlement being negotiated with the FTC, AOL and Time Warner would also have to sign up two more competitors within 90 days, and abide by a series of provisions to protect competition in Web access.

Shares of AOL were recently down $1.03, or 2.3%, to $42.94 in New York Stock Exchange composite trading, while Time Warner fell $1.61, or 2.4%, to $64.26.