Under the terms of the transaction, DirecTV will acquire Dish TV and Sling TV from EchoStar Corp. for a nominal consideration of $1 plus the assumption of about $9.75 billion of debt.
DirecTV and Dish have agreed to combine in a deal that will create the biggest pay-TV provider in the US with about 18 million subscribers.
EchoStar shares fell 18% on the news to $23.01 at 10:15 a.m. in New York. AT&T shares were little changed at $21.88.DirecTV and Dish have flirted with merging on and off for two decades. While US regulators sued in 2002 to block a previous attempt to combine, the TV landscape has changed dramatically since then.
Amazon and Netflix offer so much competition for subscribers, a Dish-DirecTV merger shouldn’t be a regulatory problem, DirecTV Chief Executive Officer Bill Morrow said on a call with investors. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2025, subject to regulatory approvals, according to the companies.Both DirecTV and Dish now offer online TV bundles that replicate the traditional cable or satellite package. DirecTV had an estimated 11.3 million subscribers at the end of 2023. Dish, controlled by billionaire Charlie Ergen, finished the second quarter with 6.
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