AT&T, Discovery In Talks To Merge Media Assets: Bloomberg

AT&T Inc. T is reportedly in talks to merge its media assets with DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS INC  DISCA.

What Happened: The talks are ongoing, and a deal could be announced as soon as this week, Bloomberg reported today, citing people familiar with the matter.

It is unclear what the the structure of the deal might look like, but such a merger could create an entertainment colossus. 

AT&T owns CNN, HBO, Cartoon Network, TBS, TNT and the Warner Bros. studio. Discovery owns networks including HGTV, Food Network, TLC and Animal Planet.

Why It Matters: The proposed deal could create an entertainment giant to compete with Netflix Inc NFLX and Walt Disney Co DIS.

HBO and HBO Max now have 63.9 million global subscribers, compared with over 100 million for Walt Disney Co's Disney+ and 207.6 million for Netflix.

Discovery reaches 88.3 million homes in the U.S.

In February, AT&T reached a deal with private equity firm TPG Capital to make its satellite TV provider DirecTV a standalone company. 

AT&T acquired Time Warner Inc. in 2018 for $85 billion, gaining some of the biggest brands in entertainment.

Discovery has seen its shares rise more than 18% this year for a valuation of $24 billion, while AT&T's shares have risen 12% for a market cap of of $230 billion, according to Bloomberg.

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