AT&T Time Warner Regulatory Approval is But One Hurdle for the Blockbuster Deal

There is considerable skepticism already about the AT&T-Time Warner tie-up. The total transaction is valued at $108.7 billion (including Time Warner debt) and some financial analysts fear AT&T will take on too much debt in the process.

Of course Time Warner is no stranger to controversial deals, They were a part of what many believe was the worst failed corporate merger in history, AoL-Time Warner, which at the time cited many of the same benefits AT&T now cites as motivation for the deal. There are also valid concerns regarding the regulatory climate for such a deal. Will regulators approve the deal at all? Or if they do, will they burden it with so many conditions that it ends up being more trouble than its worth. One area sure to receive significant scrutiny is exclusivity of Time Warner content. AT&T already allows DIRECTV programming to flow across its mobile network without counting towards a subscriber’s monthly data allowance. Regulators will surely frown upon that and will probably dictate conditions that block such behavior. Comcast has conditions on their NBC Universal deal that aim to prevent exclusivity of content. There is also a change of Federal Communications Commission leadership to come, due to the presidential election and one candidate, Trump, has already signaled he would oppose the deal if elected. Hillary Clinton had not yet commented at this post’s publishing. Regulatory approval is no slam dunk for this deal.