Ranger

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/22/bu...me-warner.html

I wonder how much this would change things. Doesn't seem like things improved when Comcast got NBC/Universal.

Could Verizon go after Disney? Maybe the just the sports stuff?

Count Dooku

My Time Warner just became Spectrum a few weeks ago

DJariya

Time Warner cable now Spectrum as a totally separate company.

The Time Warner that AT&T wants to buy is the big Daddy. The main conglomerate of Warner Bros Pictures, studios, TV, DC comics, HBO, Cinemax, CNN, Turner etc.

This would be a massive merger.

Deftones

Yeah this would be huge but scary. One company that has that much power over media is a concern.

DJariya

http://deadline.com/2016/10/time-war...ime=1477090738

Wow, deal is official. AT&T buys Time Warner for $85 billion.

Ranger

Wow, didn't think the price tag would be that high.

Kdogg

I think I've seen this show before in the 80's and 90's. I won't be surprised if the companies split apart in 10-15 years because of shareholders pressure or to "unlock" value. Remember at one point AOL bought all of Time Warner (cable, studios, tv, magazines). A decade later everything is a separate company and the only winners were AOL shareholders because they got real assets with an inflated stock that would have crashed after the tech boom of the 00's.

morriscroy

More generally, huge mergers are almost always due to hubris. More likely to destroy value in the long term.

Basically C-suite level executives who are into "empire building" and "using other people's money", while having very little ownership stake in the companies they run. They're largely highly paid "hired guns" looking to cash out. Not much more than mercenaries.

jacob_b

I guess buying the Lakers and Dodgers rights for TV was a bad investment lol. So AT&T now owns Direct TV and now Time Warner Cable. Wonder what they are going to do with the DC films now too and if they can take out Disney.

PhantomStranger

Donald Trump has already said he would block this deal as President. The media conglomerates are already far too consolidated.

DJariya

Incorrect. Time Warner Cable now Spectrum was a totally separate company. Absolutely no affiliation with main Time Warner.

jacob_b

Guess that's why they are finally doing a name change. Makes no sense to be called Time Warner if there is no relation to the big giant.

DJariya

It used to be majority owned by Time Warner Inc. However, several years ago, they decided to let it be a spinoff company and separate itself from the parent company.

Here's the press release that announced it.

http://media.corporate-ir.net/media_...ion/032009.pdf

http://ir.timewarner.com/phoenix.zht...-twcseparation

Kdogg

There has been no reason to have it called Time Warner for years.

Brief History:
Time/Life and Warner Brothers merge.
Time Warner and Turner merger.
AOL buys Time Warner.
AOL Time Warner spins off AOL.
Time Warner spins of Time Warner Cable (which was there from Time/Life)
Time Warner spins off Time (the magazines).

For all intense purpose it's now Warner and Turner.

morriscroy

(From a rambling contrarian perspective).

The only "good" I can see from such huge mega mergers in the media sector, is these companies becoming so fat and large that everybody sees them more and more as a joke than legitimate. Essentially becoming a modern multimedia version of "Pravda".

Strapped4Cash

I'm very concerned, in that my main priority is seeing tv series on physical media and I feel that WB has been the best on that front. Any possibility of change is worrisome, but especially if AT&T decides to emulate Fox and stop producing DVD's & Blu-ray's in order to push non-physical media. I don't know that they will, we shall see.

morriscroy

Ironically, Fox actually tried to buy up Warner a few years ago.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ano...ays-2015-11-16
http://www.businessinsider.com/fox-o...ewarner-2014-7

Imagine if that happened back in 2014.

PhantomStranger

I do worry what would happen if Warner stopped supporting physical media. It's fairly evident that Fox and Disney are gung-ho about digital services and don't care if media disappears.

morriscroy

If AT&T ends up buying Warner, the question is how much will the new management scuttle the home video division. For example, will they change who is in charge of the home video division?

rw2516

Business talking heads on tv are saying this is all about viewing content on mobile devices. I don't see this affecting physical media. What may happen is that Warner tv, movies and channels will only be available on phones to those who use AT&T as their phone carrier. Won't affect home cable.

Ranger

I'm sure the HBO and DC comics shows will keep coming to physical media for quite a while.

What TV shows are you worried about?

slop101

Don't we have monopoly laws or something?

Thought I'd post this, outdated at is may be, it's still applicable.

morriscroy

The anti-trust division of the department of justice will figure out whether a merger is problematic or not, in regard to competition and possible "monopolies". (Assuming the federal department of justice has not been "bought" by media business lobbyists).

Even if the anti-trust folks let the merger go through, they might also order AT&T to divest some divisions for final approval of the merger.

Kdogg

That graphic is true but it doesn't take into account all the new media outlets. In 1983 them would be reaching basically 100 percent of the US population through TV, newspaper and/or radio. Those companies are not reaching the same percentage of people now verses 1983. Netflix, Amazon, Facebook, YouTube and even niche players like Drudge, Breitbart, and Mother Jones are all drawing people from these big conglomerates.

Strapped4Cash

I'm not worried about home cable, broadcast and the initial release. My concern is entirely about whether AT&T decides that in order to better support viewing content on mobile devices then they'll do away with physical media (DVD, Blu-ray, 4K). Make it easier for all of the "old-fashioned" people to move to non-physical if that's the only option. In the same way that Fox stopped releasing the Simpsons, even though it made them decent money.

I'm concerned about all of them. I buy a fair number of the shows that WB releases, but even for those I don't buy then I want them released, so that others are happy and the physical market stays as strong as possible. Every time any series stops being released on Blu-ray, or DVD, then it upsets somebody and little by little the support for physical media goes away.