--- title: Can the AT&T-Time Warner Merger Compete with Big Tech? | TIME description: What the $85 billion merger will mean for the industry and for customers. canonical: https://time.com/video/j15aO3wl/ og:title: Can the AT&T-Time Warner Merger Compete with Big Tech? og:description: What the $85 billion merger will mean for the industry and for customers. og:url: https://time.com/video/j15aO3wl/ og:image: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/j15aO3wl/poster.jpg?width=720 og:type: video.other twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Can the AT&T-Time Warner Merger Compete with Big Tech? twitter:description: What the $85 billion merger will mean for the industry and for customers. twitter:image: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/j15aO3wl/poster.jpg?width=720 --- # Can the AT&T-Time Warner Merger Compete with Big Tech? > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. 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They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription. ## Video: Can the AT&T-Time Warner Merger Compete with Big Tech? [Watch (HLS stream): Can the AT&T-Time Warner Merger Compete with Big Tech?](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/j15aO3wl.m3u8) (3:06)  _Published 2018-06-20. What the $85 billion merger will mean for the industry and for customers._ --- Jul 28, 2023 12:08 AM UTC --- ## More From This Series [All Videos](https://time.com/video/) [Sprint and T-Mobile Merger Could Mean One Mega-Network for Customers](/video/5BB9DMg4/) ### Sprint and T-Mobile Merger Could Mean One Mega-Network for Customers [What Do Mergers Mean for Us?](/video/rImhit5L/) ### What Do Mergers Mean for Us? [AT&T-Time Warner Merger Sparks Debate](/video/NiwZppWY/) ### AT&T-Time Warner Merger Sparks Debate --- ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] AT & T is one step closer to becoming an even bigger telecom media giant. A judge ruled on June 12th that it can proceed with it's $ 85. 4 billion takeover of Time Warner. While the deal was originally proposed in 2016, Trumps Department of Justice sued to block the merger the following year. Arguing it would limit competition and raise cost for consumers. Trump wasn't the only one against the deal, there was a immediate backlash from Washington with Senator Bernie Sanders, calling for the merger to be killed. But in 172 pages Judge Richard Leon set forth a decision that will, Change the media landscape. AT & T, which most Americans know as a mobile phone network provider, is the latest in a string of telecom companies seeking to acquire media companies with blockbuster brands from TV shows to movie studios to websites. Comcast owns NBC Universal. Verizon owns websites including Yahoo and Huffington Post. And now AT & T can bring Time Warner's trove of assets, including HBU, Warner Brothers, CNN, TNT and TBS into its fold. Now this decision is a milestone in the future of vertical mergers, where two companies do not produce competing products but still have the ability to consolidate power in an industry. In the case of Time Warner it makes media content and AT & T distributes it but that's a lot of content owned by one distributor. AT & T says the move will benefit customers with special offers such as access to Time Warner content like the HBO hit series Game of Thrones. The company said it's buying the content to lower costs and offer more futuristic services like a mini package of cable channels watchable on your phone. For $ 15 a month. But as Net Neutrality rules were taken off the books in June 11th, some fear AT & T will use it's control as the second largest wireless provider to discriminate against those competing against their Or media like Netflix and Hulu. So why is this such a big deal? Well there are a lot of major corporate deals in the pipe line. From T Mobile's move to acquire Spread CVS's proposed acquisition of Aetna. Now this ruling could serve as indicator of how other companies might fair in their merger attempts. Now in the meantime AT & T's CEO Randall Stephenson is excited about what's in store for his customers, sharing this CNBC. AT & T has 170 million direct to consumer relationships. People with screens Where they're gonna be consuming this media. This is a business we're buying that is all about creativity and talent. I sent a letter out to all of our employees last night where I committed that they would have all the resources and the flexibility and freedom to do what they have been doing so well for so long. [ MUSIC ] ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Can the AT&T-Time Warner Merger Compete with Big Tech? ","description":"What the $85 billion merger will mean for the industry and for customers. 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