A new AT&T merger unwinds a previous one

Over the weekend, a massive merger agreement was hammered out between telecom giant AT&T and entertainment company Discovery Inc. If it receives the blessing of federal regulators, AT&T will spin off its WarnerMedia unit—which includes CNN, HBO, and other assets—into a separate company that it will co-own with Discovery. The usual descriptions followed: it was a merger made in heaven (Discovery chief executive David Zaslav said the two “fit together like a glove”), with numerous synergies, and would create what the New York Times called “a juggernaut.” As Paul Farhi, Washington Post media reporter, pointed out following the news, a number of deals over the past two decades were described in similar terms, including the merger of Time Warner and AOL in 2000, in a deal that was worth about $165 billion at the time. It was later unwound, with Time Warner taking a massive write-down and spinning off AOL as a separate company. Despite the hyperbole, a number of analysts and media industry experts believe the deal represents an admission of failure by AT&T. The company said it planned to buy WarnerMedia in 2016, and spent the next two years fighting with competition regulators for approval to do the deal. The acquisition was finally approved in 2018, and AT&T bought the company for $85 billion, which it heralded as the start of a new media and entertainment empire. The unwinding of the deal is “a major course correction,” Axios wrote about the new arrangement.... Continue reading at 'Columbia Journalism Review'

[ Columbia Journalism Review | 2021-05-18 12:05:33 UTC ]
News tagged with: #vanity fair #liz gough #axel springer #lifestyle magazine #editorial teams #time warner

Other Publishing stories related to: 'A new AT&T merger unwinds a previous one'


A new AT&T merger unwinds a previous one

Over the weekend, a massive merger agreement was hammered out between telecom giant AT&T and entertainment company Discovery Inc. If it receives the blessing of federal regulators, AT&T will spin off its WarnerMedia unit—which includes CNN, HBO, and other assets—into a separate company... Continue reading at Columbia Journalism Review

[ Columbia Journalism Review | 2021-05-18 12:05:33 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #vanity fair #liz gough #axel springer #lifestyle magazine #editorial teams #time warner


Google AMP beat Facebook Instant Articles, but publishers start to question AMP’s benefits

A new Chartbeat study found only one-third of publishers see clear evidence of a traffic increase from the fast-loading articles format. The post Google AMP beat Facebook Instant Articles, but publishers start to question AMP’s benefits appeared first on Digiday. Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2018-08-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Gerald Levin, the former Time Warner CEO who engineered a disastrous mega-merger, is dead at 84

Gerald Levin, who led Time Warner Media into a disastrous $182 billion merger with the internet provider America Online, has died at the age of 84 Continue reading at ABC News

[ ABC News | 2024-03-15 09:02:35 UTC ]
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TechMagic Podcast: Murderbot Diaries and the Adobe-Figma Merger Failure

On this week's episode of TechMagic, host Cathy Hackl and guest host Lee Kebler discuss Hackl's finished manuscript for her fifth book written with a previous guest, Irena Cronin, called Spatial Computing: An AI-Driven Business Revolution. Kebler thinks spatial computing... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2023-12-20 20:22:23 UTC ]
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Fairfax's WaveDancer agrees to reverse merger with Toronto's Firefly Neuroscience

The Fairfax firm says it will divest its Rockville-based Tellenger subsidiary at the close of the deal. Continue reading at Silicon Valley Business Journal

[ Silicon Valley Business Journal | 2023-11-16 13:22:39 UTC ]
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2022 Print Book Sales in 10 Major Markets Were Flat Compared to Previous Year

A Nielsen report finds that sales of print books in 10 countries totaled 614 million copies last year, level with 2021 sales. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-05-05 04:00:00 UTC ]
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The Merger of Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster Is Dead in the Water

S&S has decided not to extend the deal's deadline, which prevents PRH from appealing the court's decision to block the merger. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2022-11-21 14:58:02 UTC ]
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In Written Opinion, Judge Florence Pan Delivers Knockout Blow to PRH, S&S Merger

On November 7, Judge Florence Pan released her memorandum opinion blocking Penguin Random House from acquiring rival Big Five publisher Simon & Schuster. In the final analysis, after a year of legal wrangling and a three week trial, it wasn’t a close case for her at all. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-11-08 05:00:00 UTC ]
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A Merger Between Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster Was Blocked, but Brought the Industry Little Clarity

The uncertainty comes at a time when publishing is facing slumping sales after a pandemic boom, and fears of recession. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2022-11-01 22:14:42 UTC ]
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Court Blocks Merger of Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster

A Federal Court has blocked Penguin Random House's acquisition of one of its main rivals, Simon & Schuster. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2022-11-01 16:06:02 UTC ]
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US judge blocks $2.2bn Penguin Random House merger

Justice department argued the melding of the publishing house with Simon & Schuster would harm competition and authors’ payA US judge has blocked the $2.2bn planned merger of Penguin Random House, the world’s largest book publisher, with rival Simon & Schuster.Judge Florence Pan of the... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-11-01 00:30:18 UTC ]
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Court Blocks Penguin Random House, S&S Merger

In a brief two-page order issued late on October 31, Judge Florence Y. Pan blocked PRH's bid to buy S&S, saying the government had succeeded in showing that the proposed merger would harm "competition in the market for the U.S. publishing rights to anticipated top-selling books." Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-10-31 04:00:00 UTC ]
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In Post-Trial Briefs, PRH Attorneys Say DOJ Failed to Prove Its Case Against S&S Merger

In a highly anticipated post-trial filing PRH attorneys reiterate their claim that the government manufactured a fatally flawed case to block the nearly $2.2 billion merger—and then failed to prove it. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-09-09 04:00:00 UTC ]
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HBO Max is removing 36 shows ahead of Discovery+ merger

The union of HBO Max and Discovery+ is already causing pain through layoffs, and now the move is affecting some shows. Warner Bros. Discovery has confirmed to Variety that it's removing 36 titles from HBO Max as soon as this week while it prepares for the Discovery+ platform merger. Most of the... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2022-08-18 20:30:29 UTC ]
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DOJ v PRH: Don Weisberg, Government's Economist See Danger in PRH-S&S Merger

As the government's case against Penguin Random House's acquisition of Simon & Schuster winds down, Macmillan CEO Don Weisberg and government economist Nicholas Hill laid out reasons why they are concerned about the impact of the proposed merger. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-08-09 04:00:00 UTC ]
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NPD and IRI Have Announced an Unnamed Merger in Data and Analysis

Amid news of the NPD-IRI merger, NPD BookScan reports US print holding at 6 percent below 2021’s level in the week ending July 23. The post NPD and IRI Have Announced an Unnamed Merger in Data and Analysis appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-08-04 15:57:40 UTC ]
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Stephen King set to testify for gov't in books merger trial

Bestselling author Stephen King has testified in a federal antitrust trial in Washington Continue reading at ABC News

[ ABC News | 2022-08-03 00:28:27 UTC ]
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Stephen King testified against publishing's biggest merger. What you need to know about the antitrust trial

Stephen King testified for the government today, arguing that writers will be harmed if Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster merge. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-08-02 22:41:59 UTC ]
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Stephen King testifies against $2B Penguin merger

The deal between Penguin and Simon & Schuster would weaken competition and lower author pay, he said Continue reading at Crains New York

[ Crains New York | 2022-08-02 19:08:55 UTC ]
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Opening Arguments, Pietsch Testimony on Day One of DOJ Trial to Block PRH/S&S Merger

After the government and PRH reiterated their positions in opening arguments, HBG CEO Michael Pietsch testified to a number of concerns he has if the PRH-S&S merger is approved and said he hoped his parent company would bid on S&S if the deal is blocked. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-08-02 04:00:00 UTC ]
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