MCI announced Tuesday that its board had decided to accept an updated offer from Verizon rather than Qwest, which should end a month and a half standoff between the three companies as well as shareholders. The new offer is for $7.6 billion in cash and stock – about $1 billion above Verizon’s previous offer. The accepted offer is still lower than the 8.45 billion offered by Qwest. Why not go with the highest bidder? MCI has expressed concerns over Qwest’s financial strength, including the fact that it would need to finance the takeover. One finds it hard to see how any of these mergers will benefit the consumer.