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AT&T Media Businesses

AT&T Merges Media Assets With Discovery in Blockbuster Deal (bloomberg.com) 57

Posted by msmash from the how-about-that dept.
AT&T has agreed to spin off its media operations in a deal with Discovery that will create a new entertainment company, merging assets ranging from CNN and HBO to HGTV and the Food Network. From a report: AT&T will receive $43 billion in cash, debt securities and debt retention, with AT&T shareholders getting stock representing 71% of the new company, the companies said in a statement Monday. The deal is structured as a tax-advantaged Reverse Morris Trust. Discovery Chief Executive Officer David Zaslav is to lead the new entity. WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar's future is to be determined, AT&T CEO John Stankey said on a conference call discussing the deal. The plan, first reported by Bloomberg News, would combine Discovery's reality-TV empire with AT&T's vast media holdings, creating a formidable competitor to Netflix and Walt Disney. It marks a retreat for AT&T's entertainment-industry ambitions after years of working to assemble telecom and media assets under one roof. AT&T, now the world's most heavily indebted nonfinancial company, gained some of the biggest brands in entertainment through its $85 billion acquisition of Time Warner, completed in 2018. Further reading: Jason Kilar, the WarnerMedia chief, is said to be negotiating his exit.
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AT&T Merges Media Assets With Discovery in Blockbuster Deal More

AT&T Merges Media Assets With Discovery in Blockbuster Deal

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  • the basic tv package will have more forced into it

    • Who cares? Does anyone still subscribe to cable anymore? I've been streaming + antenna for years.

      • I don't even own a TV anymore.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by DewDude ( 537374 )

        Yeah...how's having to subscribe to 20 different services work out?

        • I don't. I have 2 (netflix and prime) and a home media server for everything else that companies won't put on netflix/prime.
        • Comment removed based on user account deletion

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by dgatwood ( 11270 )

            The problem is, even with only two of those services (okay, three), I don't get enough out of the second one to pay $10 a month. As the number of services increases, the value of each individual service drops.

            What we had before was mandatory groups of unrelated content, with no ability to choose which ones we subscribed to, but with a single point of payment, with the understanding that it is implied that when you watch more of one, you'll watch less of another, so the price of each service is at least to

            • I don't think it's possible to design a system that is perfect for consumers. The fundamental reason being the content producers and distributors are simultaneously trying to maximize their interests.

              In your scenario of a single middleman, they will inevitably use their monopoly to jack up prices. (This is what we see with audible.com - they provide that 'single entry' to audiobooks but as a result the prices are way out of line with other digital media.)

              Ultimately even if you have multiple middlemen

            • Re: (Score:2)

              by gmack ( 197796 )

              So I'm looking now at what I have and what I'm paying: Youtube ($14 CAD), Netflix ($20 CAD), Prime (got for cheap shipping so essentially free). Even if I add Disney+ / HBO, I'm still well below the cost of basic cable where I live so I fail to understand the source of your complaint.

              • timeOday may be in his teens/early twenties and the way media is distributed seems dumb, arbitrary and capricious. They are right in a way but because this is really the only way they have ever seen things really work, can't be appreciative of how good we have it now.

                When I was a teen/early twenties you only had cable tv or dish network. Most people bundled cable and phone and eventually Internet when it was an option. Internet back then didn't have streaming anything and it was really hard to buy content a

                • Re: (Score:2)

                  by gmack ( 197796 )

                  When I was in my early 20s, I had Cable TV for about 1 year before I realized I was spending $70/month for nothing. Since then, I don't even have an antenna. Life is better with all my streaming services connected to my TV. I do agree on one point though. I would love a service that let me purchase per show since I still don't actually watch that much.

          • Re: (Score:3)

            by Kisai ( 213879 )

            I think ultimately the problem is that Internet Service Providers (ISP)'s should not own content, because it creates a harmful captive-audience situation.

            Like, imagine if your internet was government-provided and you were only permitted to watch CSPAN and PBS.

            That's what happens when media companies are also the internet service companies. They make backroom deals to save money by making sure that only their own content is free. I do see Comcast and also Verizon breaking up their non-ISP services so they do

        • Re:the basic tv package will have more forced into (Score:5, Insightful)

          by EvilSS ( 557649 ) on Monday May 17, 2021 @10:51AM (#61393314)

          Yeah...how's having to subscribe to 20 different services work out?

          Awesome actually. I have a hand full of services I keep year round, and others I swap in and out as shows I'm interested in on them come up. I don't have to commit to a multi-year contract for a linear service with ads and a bunch of channels I'll never watch but have to pay for to get the channels I would want to watch, and it's way cheaper than when I had cable.

        • Its working out great. Its literally the a-la-carte TV utopia the cable providers said was impossible.

      • Yes, but anyone streaming their stations or shows will possibly be affected by this.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by sinij ( 911942 )

      the basic tv package will have more forced into it

      I know, right? On top of telegraph and landline fees, this is killing my budget.

    • Yes and even more people end up cutting the cord as a result. For their TV operations they've been consistently losing over half a million customers per quarter for years already. In 2019 they lost a grand total of 3.6 million customers and I'm pretty sure a lot of companies would have been happy to have that many customers to lose in the first place.

      Eventually they'll just have to get to a point where something just has to give. Most probably the idea here is to get Discovery's management, who are in fa

      • make sports premium

      • Those poor poor cable companies all run Internet service to the same customers. If you cut the cord, they tack on some more to your stand alone Internet bill. It's tempting to switch entirely over to my mobile carrier for Internet as it's just my wife and I. I think part of it is the email address keeping me as I've had it for over two decades (fuck i'm getting old), so it's kind of nice to have.

        Still, I can't really feel bad for local cable companies. If they jack up my Internet price much they may push me

  • The rest of us get bombarded by even more ads and fees.

  • Cool (Score:3)

    by Lando ( 9348 ) <lando2+slash@@@gmail...com> on Monday May 17, 2021 @09:22AM (#61393036) Homepage Journal

    I've always though HBO needed more unscripted television shows.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by NFN_NLN ( 633283 )

      Band of Brothers 2021 - Just a bunch of guys dressed up in period accurate clothing playing air soft. This season David Schwimmer reunites with the cast of Friends.

      • Even describing it that way actually makes it sound kind of interesting. Not enough to go grab hbo just for it, but still interesting.

  • Happy trails, Battlebots (Score:5, Insightful)

    by nwaack ( 3482871 ) on Monday May 17, 2021 @09:43AM (#61393108)
    Since AT&T completely ruins everything they touch, I'm sure their first order of business will be to remove all Battlebots programming from Discovery. RIP to one of the only truly good nerd shows left on Discovery.

    • Re:Happy trails, Battlebots (Score:5, Funny)

      by phalse phace ( 454635 ) on Monday May 17, 2021 @10:03AM (#61393186)

      Since AT&T completely ruins everything they touch....

      There's a reason why AT&T's corporate logo is the deathstar

    • Re: (Score:3)

      by jwhyche ( 6192 )

      Merging with AT&T. Didn't' work out to well for DirectV. Nice knowing you Discovery.

      • Re: (Score:3)

        by EvilSS ( 557649 )

        Merging with AT&T. Didn't' work out to well for DirectV. Nice knowing you Discovery.

        They are not merging with AT&T. AT&T is spinning out WB into its own company, and that company is merging with Discovery, with the current head of Discovery running the new company. AT&T Shareholders and Discovery shareholders will get new shares issued in the new company (70/30 if I recall). The new company will be independent of AT&T management.

    • Re:Happy trails, Battlebots (Score:4, Interesting)

      by teg ( 97890 ) on Monday May 17, 2021 @10:26AM (#61393252)

      Since AT&T completely ruins everything they touch, I'm sure their first order of business will be to remove all Battlebots programming from Discovery. RIP to one of the only truly good nerd shows left on Discovery.

      Discovery has managed that very well on their own over the last decades. I remember when they actually had science shows, shows about dinosaurs and other ancient creatures, the universe, Egypt and other ancient civilizations. Now it's just reality and crime, neither of which I care to watch.

    • Re: (Score:3)

      by EvilSS ( 557649 )
      The new company will be run by the Discovery CEO so I don't see anything like that happening.
    • Comment removed based on user account deletion
    • Comment removed based on user account deletion

      • Re: (Score:3)

        by nwaack ( 3482871 )

        The merger isn't working like that right now. Give it a few months, after ATT has had a chance to get their grimy paws all over everything. Hopefully I'm wrong.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by tlhIngan ( 30335 )

      Since AT&T completely ruins everything they touch, I'm sure their first order of business will be to remove all Battlebots programming from Discovery. RIP to one of the only truly good nerd shows left on Discovery.

      Yeah, Discovery has been ruined by the current CEO's perchant for reality shows beyond the scripted reality shows. They are going for shows that have minimal editing and practically live and boring as hell.

      Only so much North West Law and such filling up the schedule. Hell, even CSI reruns are

  • "Blockbuster" deal. (Score:3)

    by AcidFnTonic ( 791034 ) on Monday May 17, 2021 @10:18AM (#61393228) Homepage

    "Blockbuster" deal. It doesn't sound that good anymore after the death of the rental company of the same name.

    Kind of like an "Enron" deal...

  • Comment removed (Score:5, Funny)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Monday May 17, 2021 @10:58AM (#61393338)
    Comment removed based on user account deletion
    • It's already happening. I've noticed with my AT&T Now service, if you pause a recorded show, after a few seconds it starts playing ads for other shows. Really annoying when you're pausing it to try to read an easter egg in the background, or to silence it to take a phone call (now I have to hit pause + mute). So far HBO Max is unaffected. But given that they're (currently) owned by the same company I have to think it's just a matter of time.

  • Yay? (Score:5, Funny)

    by fahrbot-bot ( 874524 ) on Monday May 17, 2021 @11:03AM (#61393356)

    AT&T Merges Media Assets With Discovery in Blockbuster Deal

    Blockbuster is making a comeback!

  • They're bringing back Blockbuster? Great, it's about time.

  • en suite (Score:5, Insightful)

    by PopeRatzo ( 965947 ) on Monday May 17, 2021 @11:04AM (#61393364) Journal

    Oh great. Now there will be even more HGTV shows where guys who know how to use tools will fix up their houses so my wife can look at me like the lazy SOB that I am.

    Personally, those home improvement shows disgust me. They all seem to show some perky couple who want to take a perfectly good house and tear everything that has any character out of it so they can spend $150,000 to make them look like a room at Motel 6. Of course, there has to be some huge marble island in the kitchen and a two-sink vanity in the bathroom. I mean, do people really want to be able to brush their teeth or trim their nose hair while standing next to their spouse? Hell, just put an extra bathroom in the basement and I'll use that one. I mean, yeah, I wouldn't mind a magazine rack in the john, but that's about the sum of all the upgrades I need.

    Fuck all those people on HGTV, that's what I say.

  • Further reading: Jason Kilar, the WarnerMedia chief, is said to be negotiating his exit.

    Must be nice to be an executive and be able to "negotiate" how you leave unlike all the rank and file that will probably get a "don't let the door hit you on the way out".

  • Sounds like thanks to AT&T's debt transfer this entity will not have to pay taxes for a long time.

    • tax-advantaged Reverse Morris Trust
    • AT&T, now the world's most heavily indebted nonfinancial company

    • A Reverse Morris Trust allows the spinoff process to be tax-free (at the outset). The combined entity will not be tax-free. If AT&T had just sold their media assets to Discovery outright, they'd need to figure a capital gain/loss on the assets being sold. With a Reverse Morris Trust, the media company is being split, spun-out, and then merged with Discovery to create a new entity. AT&T stockholders will receive 71% of the new entity. They will pay tax on their gain/loss at the time they sell the sto

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