Citing Elon Musk's ownership of satellite internet platform Starlink, the Open Markets Institute says that the FCC, Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission all have the power to block his purchase of social media giant Twitter.

In a statement following the deal announcement, OMI, a liberal think tank that has big issues with perceived monopolies, sees Musk's Twitter takeover as just that, and says the FCC, for one, can block it based on the Communications Act of 1934 and even the Telegraph Act of 1860, given that the deal would give a single person "direct control over one of the world's most important platforms for public communications and debate."

Also: Warner Warns Musk Against Twitter Backslide

DOJ and the FTC certainly have a role in reviewing the $40 billion-plus deal, but the FCC's role is less clear, particularly since it basically shed itself of broadband access oversight -- beyond service transparency obligations -- when it reclassified internet as an information service.

OMI also says the deal would be a merger between essential platforms -- Starlink and Twitter -- that the government routinely acts to prevent.

Interestingly, the group cites for example the DOJ's effort to block the ATT&T/Time Warner deal, which actually failed after a court refused to block that merger.

OMI suggests that Starlink, which has yet to become a major internet player (though it did get a lot of press for Musk's effort to use the satellites to provide internet access to war-torn Ukraine) is comparable to the largest media operations. 

"[J]ust as we would now expect the U.S. government to block a takeover of Twitter by Google, Facebook, Comcast, or Verizon, the same rules apply to the owners of Starlink," it said in a statement.

Many Democrats are concerned that Musk's pledge of reduced content moderation on the platform -- in the name of free speech -- will lead to an increase in disinformation and misinformation. 

FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr, who has been crticial of what Republicans see as Twitter's censorship of conservative speech, including that of former President Donald Trump, was unconvinced.

“The FCC has no authority to block Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter, and to suggest otherwise is absurd," said Carr in a statement. "I would welcome the full FCC making it clear that we will not entertain these types of frivolous arguments.”■

Add the Open Markets Institute (OMI) to the list of those who say that a likely multi-billion settlement with Facebook over privacy practices isn't enough.

Facebook signaled Wednesday (April 24) in its first-quarter financial statement that it was going to have to factor in an up-to-$5 billion payout related to the Federal Trade Investigation into whether Facebook had violated a 2011 consent decree related to its data privacy protection or, more to the point, lack of it.

Related: Sen. Wyden Says Facebook Should Be Liable for Privacy Violations

At the upper end, the fine would constitute a third of the almost $15 billion in revenue for the quarter.

But OMI Executive Director Barry Lynn sees the likely fine as "grossly insuffient" for what he says was Facebook's "outrageous" behavior.

"Facebook for years demonstrated complete disregard for its original agreement with the FTC," he said in a statement. "By failing to stand up for its own authority, the FTC appears, in turn, to be demonstrating complete disregard for the fundamental interests of the American people," said Lynn. "Rule of law requires that enforcers of the law enforce the law. Congress should act immediately to ensure that all five members of the Commission fully understand their jobs, and the responsibilities entrusted to them by the American people. Democracy depends on breaking Facebook's stranglehold over the flow of news and information and ensuring the corporation fully respects and protects the privacy of the millions of citizens who use the platform. It’s time for all five of the FTC’s commissioners to do what the American people hired them to do.”

It was a year ago last month that the FTC confirmed it was investigating Facebook over its privacy and data security practices, saying it has "substantial concerns." Those have likely only increased with subsequent revelations, including congressional concerns about its research project that incentivized teens and others to give up info (Project Atlas) and news that the company was sharing data with big tech and is planning to integrate WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook Messenger.

The FTC investigation followed the revelation that Cambridge Analytica had used Facebook user data without their knowledge to build profiles it then sold to political campaigns, including the Trump campaign. Analytica reportedly used the information with most users having not given their permission for Facebook to share it with a third party.

Facebook is under an FTC consent decree dating from its 2011 settlement of FTC allegations it deceived consumers by not keeping its privacy promises. The FTC is authorized to enforce such pledges under its Sec. 5 (unfair and deceptive practices) authority. The commission was investigating whether Facebook had violated that agreement

That consent decree required Facebook to obtain a users' permission before sharing data, so that Cambridge Analytica data dump appeared to be a violation of the agreement.