AT&T Completes Acquisition of Time Warner

Stephenson promises a “fresh approach” to media and entertainment

After beating the Justice Department in court, AT&T said it completed its acquisition of Time Warner.

The move combines AT&T's distribution with the entertainment assets of Time Warner.

“The content and creative talent at Warner Bros., HBO and Turner are first-rate. Combine all that with AT&T’s strengths in direct-to-consumer distribution, and we offer customers a differentiated, high-quality, mobile-first entertainment experience,” said AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson. “We’re going to bring a fresh approach to how the media and entertainment industry works for consumers, content creators, distributors and advertisers.”

Related: AT&T-Time Warner Merger Approval Draws Crowd 

Stephenson said the company will offer premium content, direct to consumer distribution and high speed networks.

AT&T will be segmented into four businesses:

· AT&T Communications provides mobile, broadband, video and other communications services to U.S.-based consumers and nearly 3.5 million companies. Revenues from these services totaled more than $150 billion in 2017.

· AT&T’s media business consists of HBO, Turner and Warner Bros. Together, these businesses had revenues of more than $31 billion in 2017. A new name for this business will be announced later.

· AT&T International provides mobile services in Mexico to consumers and businesses, plus pay-TV service across 11 countries in South America and the Caribbean. It had revenues of more than $8 billion in 2017.

· AT&T’s advertising and analytics business provides marketers with advanced advertising solutions using valuable customer insights from AT&T’s TV, mobile and broadband services, combined with extensive ad inventory from Turner and AT&T’s pay-TV services. A name for this company will be announced in the future.

Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes will serve as a senior advisor to AT&T during a transition period. His direct reports, including the heads of Turner, HBO and Warner Bros., will report to John Stankey, CEO of AT&T’s media business.