Mere weeks after activist investor Elliott Management publicly pressed AT&T to slash costs and dial down its acquisitions strategy, it appears as if Chairman-CEO Randall Stephenson has knuckled under to those demands. Speaking today on AT&T’s third-quarter earnings call, Stephenson laid out a three-year plan that includes a pledge to conduct a comprehensive review of all non-essential businesses that may be be sold or spun off, while also making a commitment to retire all the debt related to its $85 billion acquisition of Time Warner. Stephenson also said that he plans to stay aboard through at least 2020. This is particularly important, as speculation that he was about to hand the reins to WarnerMedia boss John Stankey may have been one of the factors that precipitated Elliott’s decision to put the squeeze on the AT&T board. “I believe we’re on the threshold of something really remarkable, in terms of the next chapter of AT&T’s storied history,” Stephenson said. “I have every intention of being here, and I will be here through 2020.” Stephenson added that when the time comes for AT&T to choose his successor, the CEO and chairmanship positions will be made separate, a split for which Elliott advocated in its Sept. 9 letter to the board. Stankey, who recently was upped to chief operating officer at AT&T, remains the heir apparent. “Following five-plus years of heavy investment, it’s now time to reap the rewards of these investments and deliver... Continue reading at 'Advertising Age'
[ Advertising Age | 2019-10-28 20:32:03 UTC ]
Charter Communications Inc., the largest cable provider in New York, will be allowed to continue operating in New York after reaching an agreement with regulators. The state Public Service Commission approved a settlement with Charter today, reversing a decision it made a year earlier to kick... Continue reading at Silicon Valley Business Journal
[ Silicon Valley Business Journal | 2019-07-12 11:59:24 UTC ]
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Charter Communications Inc., the largest cable provider in New York state, will be allowed to continue operating in New York after reaching an agreement with regulators. The state Public Service Commission approved a settlement with Charter today, reversing a decision it made a year earlier to... Continue reading at Silicon Valley Business Journal
[ Silicon Valley Business Journal | 2019-07-12 11:50:50 UTC ]
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The aftershocks of AT&T’s acquisition of Time Warner continue to rumble through the WarnerMedia unit, as longtime ad sales chief Donna Speciale is parting ways with the company just one week after she closed out the last bit of its upfront business. Speciale, who joined WarnerMedia... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2019-07-11 01:55:08 UTC ]
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AT&T Inc. is weighing a sale of its regional sports networks as part of a plan to cut as much as $8 billion in debt by the end of the year, according to people familiar with the matter. The four regional networks, which includes rights to teams such as the hockey’s Pittsburgh Penguins,... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2019-07-02 19:54:11 UTC ]
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The amount of time adults in America stay connected with media is astronomical. Specifically, they spend 11 hours and 27 minutes per day plugged into some type of device, according to the Q1 Nielsen Total Audience report released today. And even though there are many streaming options for... Continue reading at AdWeek
[ AdWeek | 2019-07-01 10:00:11 UTC ]
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If you want to see what’s driving ad spending, just look at the gains: The biggest U.S. internet companies—including the likes of Amazon, Facebook and Uber—are powering the ad market as they double down on their own marketing. That’s the key takeaway from the 64th annual Ad Age Leading National... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2019-06-28 09:00:00 UTC ]
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When it comes to ad spending, the FANG gang has developed some serious teeth. For the first time, all four FANG companies—Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Google parent Alphabet—rank among the top 100 spenders in Ad Age Leading National Advertisers 2019. FANG—Wall Street lingo for these internet... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2019-06-25 07:00:00 UTC ]
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AT&T Inc. named Ann Sarnoff as the first woman to lead Warner Bros., filling a key vacancy created by the departure of Kevin Tsujihara following a sex scandal. Sarnoff is currently president of BBC Studios America and has more than 30 years of business and media experience, AT&T’s... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2019-06-24 21:32:18 UTC ]
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LiveRamp has agreed to acquire Boston-based Data Plus Math for $150 million, a move the company says will allow marketers to measure TV ad effectiveness across linear and advanced TV. LiveRamp provides brands the ability to match their first-party data to platforms such as Pinterest, for... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2019-06-24 15:34:50 UTC ]
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AT&T is now part of Harry Potter lore as the first brand to ink a sponsorship deal with the new augmented reality game about the wizarding world. AT&T stores are incorporated into the landscape of the game, called “Harry Potter: Wizards Unite,” which is by Niantic, the creator of... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2019-06-21 21:00:51 UTC ]
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[caption id="attachment_160093" align="alignright" width="150"] Jon Werther[/caption] National Media Group president Jon Werther is out at Meredith Corp. after seven years with the company, effective immediately. In a statement from president and CEO Tom Harty, he said that there aren’t any... Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2019-06-12 20:33:28 UTC ]
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From the day in 2016 when AT&T announced its $85.4-billion merger with Time Warner, through three years of antitrust wrangling over the deal, the big telecommunications company promised that it would mean lower prices and more choices for consumers. Now AT&T has a message for everyone... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2019-03-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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When AT&T announced in August that it had acquired the rights to a pay-per-view golf duel between Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson on Thanksgiving weekend, its rechristened entertainment divisionWarnerMediafaced a challenge: how to create a golf event that would appeal beyond the sport's... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2018-11-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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AT&T is acquiring ad tech platform AppNexus, with plans to integrate it into its advertising and analytics unit, the company said Monday. The move will undoubtedly shake up the current ad landscape as well as challenge the so-called duopoly of Google and Facebook.AppNexus, which has been... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2018-06-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Time Warner Inc. is no more. Late Thursday, AT&T Inc. announced that it completed its $85-billion acquisition of Time Warner Inc., just two days after a federal judge in Washington gave the deal the green light. AT&T wasted little time consolidating its hard-fought prize — a blockbuster... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2018-06-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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At the New York Rights Fair, authors and publishing professionals sought to learn more about a book-to-film marketplace that’s been disrupted by a proliferation of streaming services. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2018-05-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The government on Monday made its final plea to a federal judge to block AT&T Inc.’s $85.4-billion purchase of Time Warner Inc. or order it significantly scaled back, arguing that the combined company would be so powerful it would hinder competition and raise pay TV prices for consumers.... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2018-04-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Time Warner Inc.’s chief executive testified Wednesday that the government’s assertions that AT&T Inc. wanted to buy the company to use its programming as leverage over distributors “makes no sense” because it would limit viewership. “I think it’s ridiculous. It’s not how this works,” Jeff... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2018-04-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Citizens of Lilliput, unite! We must subdue the evil Gulliverer, Zuckerberg!Variety's just-released cover story doesn't exactly say that, but that's the subtext of the trade magazine's "Gulliver's Travels"-inspired cover illustration (above right). In his piece headlined "Facebook Under Fire:... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2018-04-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The biggest U.S. antitrust case of this century kicked into high gear on Thursday as a government lawyer warned that AT&T Inc. wants to buy media giant Time Warner Inc. to “weaponize” its must-have content — a move that would raise prices for consumers and hinder innovation. “Time Warner... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2018-03-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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