WASHINGTON (Reuters) - AT&T Inc won court approval on Tuesday to buy Time Warner Inc for $85 billion, rebuffing an attempt by U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration to block the deal and likely setting off a wave of corporate mergers.
The merger was approved without conditions and is seen as a turning point for a media industry that has been upended by companies like Netflix Inc and Google which produce content and sell it online directly to consumers, without requiring a pricey cable subscription. Distributors including cable, satellite and wireless carriers all see buying content companies as a way to add revenue.
The decision comes despite criticism from Trump, a frequent detractor of Time Warner’s CNN and its coverage. The deal was announced in October 2016 and quickly denounced by Trump.
The ruling could also prompt a cascade of pay TV companies buying television and movie makers, with Comcast Corp’s bid for some Twenty-First Century Fox Inc assets potentially the first out of the gate.
The merger, including debt, would be the fourth largest deal ever attempted in the global telecom, media and entertainment space, according to Thomson Reuters data. It would also be the 12th largest deal in any sector, the data showed.
“I conclude that the government has failed to meet its burden” to show that the merger was likely to substantially lessen competition, U.S. District Judge Richard Leon told the court. He called one of the government’s positions “gossamer thin” and another “poppycock.”
In a scathing opinion bit.ly/2Jxx6qE
