Private equity firm TPG has entered into exclusive talks to acquire a minority stake in AT&T Inc's satellite TV division, DirecTV, in a deal that would allow the U.S. wireless carrier to trim its net debt of close to US$150 billion, people familiar with the matter said on Friday.
The exact price TPG is willing to pay could not be learned, but sources said the deal could value DirecTV at more than US$15 billion. Were the negotiations to conclude successfully, a deal could be announced in the coming weeks, added the sources, who requested anonymity because the matter is confidential.AT&T shares rose close to 1per cent on the news to an intraday high of US$29.05, giving the company a market capitalization of nearly US$210 billion.
Since then, DirecTV has been bleeding subscribers, with users shifting to less costly online streaming services such as Netflix Inc and Amazon.com Inc's Prime service.AT&T has said it lost 590,000 subscribers in the third quarter spanning its DirecTV, U-verse and AT&T TV platforms. It is under pressure to trim its swelling debt pile as it invests more in 5G and other wireless services.
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