On Tuesday AT&T and Time Warner received approval for their $85 billion merger that brings together channels like CNN, HBO with the number two mobile carrier in the US. The deal is just the start of what is shaping up to be a very busy year for technology and media mergers and acquisitions. Less than …
Tag: Time Warner
Technology and Media Consolidation Fuels M&A Activity
As expected, mergers and acquisitions activity in 2018 is off to a strong start with deal value already reaching $2 trillion this year. Tax reform, which lowered the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% has certainly impacted activity as many companies are already putting their tax savings to work in deals. One interesting trend we’ve seen …
Lessons for the Middle Market from the AT&T – Time Warner Deal
396 days. One year and one month. That is how long it’s been since AT&T first announced it would acquire Time Warner for $85 billion on October 22, 2016. As the AT&T – Time Warner deal languishes in the courts, I am again reminded of the advantages that privately held middle market companies have when …
Media Consolidation: Acquiring to Stay Relevant
The media industry is going through a wave of consolidation as traditional players try to adjust to changing consumer habits. Demand for traditional media like print newspapers, cable TV, magazines, and landline phones, has decreased as streaming, mobile and digital media becomes more popular. As this trend continues, businesses will continue acquiring to capture consumers, …
Content Is King: AT&T to Acquire Time Warner
Seeking growth amid a shifting telecommunications industry, AT&T has bet on media content. The company plans to acquire Time Warner for $85 billion in one of the biggest media acquisitions in history. The transaction will likely take over a year to receive regulatory approval, but both AT&T and Time Warner executives are optimistic. AT&T CEO Randall …
The Dangers of Getting Swept Away In the Excitement of a Deal
“The danger with a mergers-and-acquisitions boom is that chief executives could allow themselves to get carried away by the thrill of the hunt, reducing their focus on internal investment projects that might have a better chance of bearing fruit,” says the New York Time’s Dealbook column. M&A activity has reached record highs and shows no …
The Greatest Hurdle Facing Tech Mergers
The biggest tech M&A disasters were the Time Warner-AOL $350 billion merger and Google’s $12.3 billion acquisition of Motorola Mobility. In my observations, the greatest hurdle facing tech mergers is integration. Even where the strategy of the acquisition is solid, if the integration of the two workforces and assets is not executed properly, it will fail. Even …