WASHINGTON (AP) - Now that a federal judge has approved AT&T's $85 billion takeover of Time Warner, other companies are likely to rush to consolidate.

  

Tuesday's ruling signaled that federal regulators will have a hard time stopping companies from getting bigger by gobbling up rivals and the programming they own. Even if a company doesn't need to get bigger right away, it might need to do so to prevent a competitor from overshadowing it.

  

For starters, expect Comcast to make a bid for Fox's entertainment business as early as Wednesday. Disney has made a $52.4 billion all-stock offer for the bulk of Twenty-First Century Fox, including the studios behind the "Avatar" movies, "The Simpsons" and "Modern Family." Comcast has promised to top that. AT&T's favorable ruling would seem to clear any regulatory hesitation.