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The last few decades have been full of huge corporate mergers. In one sector after another — airlines, energy, finance, media, pharmaceuticals and much more — the biggest companies have gotten bigger by buying other companies.

And thanks to a court ruling Tuesday, a new round of mergers may be about to begin. Judge Richard Leon ruled that AT&T could buy Time Warner, rejecting the Justice Department’s argument that the deal would reduce competition and hurt consumers.

The deal is known as a vertical merger, because it involves two companies in different areas of an industry. (A horizontal merger involves competitors.) Time Warner produces content, like shows for HBO and basketball broadcasts on TNT. AT&T distributes content, through its mobile-phone business and DirectTV. Now that Leon has approved the merger, many analysts think other vertical mergers in technology and media may follow.