Federal Communications Commission (FCC) officials joined lawyers at the Justice Department who have been opposing the merger deal of mass media company Comcast Corporation and telecommunications company Time Warner Cable Inc.

According to an individual familiar with the matter, representatives of the companies were told that FCC officials found the merger between the two biggest United States cable companies will not help consumers as the discussions are not public. As per reports of Bloomberg News, Justice Department staff has been bending against the deal.

Officials of FCC, who have been opposing the merger, met with executives of Time Warner Cable and Comcast on Wednesday. As per the reports, the opposition from the government agency was stronger than opposition by the Justice Department. In addition, it could be the bigger obstacles for the merger deal.

To block the deal, the Justice Department will present a case in court, while FCC could block the deal by calling a hearing. The process of hearing could take several months, which could drag the deal beyond the companies’ time frame to complete the deal.

In a telephonic interview, Rich Greenfield, an analyst at BTIG in New York, said, “I’d never say anything was 100% dead, but this is in the 99% category. It’s not every day that you have a transaction that is universally hated by everyone outside of Philadelphia, where Comcast is based”.

The person having knowledge about the situation said that officials of FCC will recommend that merger should be sent to an administrative hearing. FCC’s recommendation shows that the deal is complex which requires vote by the commission, the person stated.

In a statement, Sena Fitzmaurice, a spokeswoman for Comcast, said that the company will have a number of meetings with the Department of Justice. It will also have a meeting with FCC, Fitzmaurice added.