The Charter-Time Warner deal just got approved with a bunch of caveats (TWC, CHTR)

Joshua Lott/Reuters

The US Justice Department and the FCC have approved Charter’s proposed takeover of Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks.

An FCC order approved the $10.4 billion acquisition of Bright House. Charter’s acquisition of Time Warner is worth $78 billion.

The DOJ filed a civil antitrust lawsuit on Monday to block the deals, which would resolve competition issues if it’s approved by the court.

The combined company, called New Charter, would create the second-largest cable company in the US, according to the DOJ.

“This merger would have threatened competition by increasing the merged company’s leverage to demand that programmers limit their licensing to these online providers,” said Renata Hesse, head of the antitrust division.

Among the conditions of the deal are that New Charter would not be allowed to impose prices and data caps based on usage and cannot limit access to streaming video.

The FCC will use an independent monitor to ensure that these conditions are complied with.

Both companies would account for 34% of the US cable-broadband market, according to BI Intelligence. As cable companies grapple with declining TV subscriptions, a solid broadband unit should help the combined company give customers what they really want these days: on-demand, customizable content.

Shares of Time Warner and Charter rose after initial reports that the DOJ was about to approve the deal.