NEW YORK: AT&T is in advanced discussions to acquire Time Warner, sources said yesterday, a deal that would give the telecom company control of cable channel HBO, the CNN news network, film studio Warner Bros and other media assets.
The deal would be one of the largest in recent years in the sector as telecom companies look to combine content and distribution capabilities to match consumer demand for tailored offerings and online delivery.
AT&T, which sells wireless phone and broadband services, has already made moves to turn itself into a media powerhouse, buying satellite TV provider DirecTV last year for $48.5 billion. Time Warner has a market value of about $70bn and AT&T has a market value of about $230bn.
Time Warner chief executive Jeff Bewkes rejected a $80bn offer from Twenty-First Century Fox in 2014, but sources yesterday said that the former suitor had no plans to renew its bid.
An agreement between AT&T and Time Warner could be announced as early as on Monday, said the sources.
AT&T would likely be able to win US antitrust approval for the deal, some experts said, but it is unclear whether certain conditions would be needed to win that approval.
The US Justice Department “will look at it but they won’t stop it,” said Darren Bush, who teaches antitrust issues at the University of Houston.