Our opinion: New York consumers seem poised to lose in the proposed $45 billion merger between Comcast and Time Warner Cable.

The state Public Service Commissions seems to be hinting that its final recommendation on the proposed Comcast Corp. purchase of Time Warner Cable will be a “yes” with conditions.

PSC staff has recommended Time Warner’s minimum Internet package be maintained because staff believes rate hikes otherwise would be inevitable, counter to what the companies have promised. PSC staff also suggested conditions on the deal regarding employment levels, customer service and broadband availability, according to the Times Union’s Larry Rulison.

These are important points that completely miss the broader issue: Whether the deal should be approved at all.

The $45.2 billion combination of the two cable and Internet giants needs approval by both the PSC and the Federal Communications Commission. The PSC noted in an August filing that it’s “not offering an opinion” on whether the federal government should approve the merger. The FCC can certainly decide for itself, but the PSC can — and should — say no.

The PSC also has noted its concerns about the merger’s potential to sway “market power” — a company’s influence over suppliers and customers in terms of prices and contract negotiations. New York consumers, especially those in the Capital Region, would go from reasonably sized pan fish in Time Warner’s lake to mere specks in Comcast’s ocean. Comcast would control more than two-thirds of the nation’s cable TV customers and nearly 40 percent of the high-speed Internet market, if the deal goes through.

Gerald Norlander, an attorney who advocates on behalf of utility customers through an initiative called New York’s Utility Project, has questioned the deal. He noted in July that Comcast has told investors the deal will result in more than $1 billion a year in savings. “How can they save a billion a year without cutting?” he said.

Anyone who has ever spent a nails-on-chalkboard telephone call trying to reduce a phone

cable/Internet bill can guess what Mr. Norlander worries will suffer the most: Customer service. Earlier this year, an audio recording of a nasty Comcast customer service representative refusing to allow a customer to cancel service went viral. Of course, Comcast painted the employee as a bad apple, but, really, we can just imagine the behavior that stems from a “make it difficult to cancel” model.

Common Cause has sued PSC to stop the merger. Among its many arguments is Comcast’s history of proposing data caps, which limit the amount of Internet that its customers can use without paying a fee. The company has said the limits would apply to all its customers within five years.

In New York, the PSC can only approve a utility merger if a specific benefit to consumers is found. So far, the benefits sound illusory. The PSC should say no and allow us fish the limited choices we already have.