merger
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Lawmakers call on US to extend conditions of Comcast-NBC merger
When Comcast acquired NBCUniversal back in 2011, the deal came with strings attached: among others, it had to abide by 2010-era net neutrality rules, provide affordable internet to low-income families and avoid discriminating against rivals. Well, all those conditions have lifted... and that's not making some officials happy. FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn and Senator Richard Blumenthal have written an op-ed calling on the government to either extend those conditions or institute new rules relevant to the modern era. The communications giant has discovered ways of using its resources to "harm consumers and competition," the lawmakers argued, and some of those have violated the FCC's terms for the merger.
Dell may sell itself to VMware, a company it already owns
Dell has been a privately run company for more than 4 years, but it appears ready to return to public life -- in a convoluted way. CNBC sources have claimed that Dell is exploring a "reverse merger" with VMware where the virtual machine maker (80 percent owned by Dell following the EMC deal) would buy its parent and let the resulting company go public without having to launch a new stock offering. It would also let Dell pay off some of its roughly $50 billion in debt.
CBS and Viacom are reportedly exploring a massive media merger
The heads of Viacom and CBS have discussed the prospect of merger, according to Reuters sources. Earlier this month, Viacom CEO Bob Bakish and CBS CEO Leslie Moonves reportedly had an exploratory talk about a potential merger and both companies' boards have scheduled a number of meetings to continue that discussion over the next few weeks.
Uber gets the go-ahead for its Russian merger
Uber's merger with Yandex's taxi service is effectively a done deal. Russian antitrust regulators have approved the union between the two ride-hailing companies, clearing the way for its expected completion in January 2018. The deal gives Yandex majority control (59.3 percent), but prevents the newly united companies from blocking drivers, partners or passengers from getting involved with rival services.
FCC repeals restrictions on consolidation of media companies
Today, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) repealed a handful of rules that it said were keeping the media industry out of the digital age, the Washington Post reports. The decades-old regulations were implemented in order to keep a diversity of perspectives within print, radio, and televised media outlets, but FCC Chairman Ajit Pai says they're out of date and don't reflect the current media landscape. "Few of the FCC's rules are staler than our broadcast ownership regulations," he said. "This agency finally drags its broadcast ownership rules to the digital age."
AT&T CEO: DOJ never demanded CNN sale in Time Warner deal
Yesterday, reports surfaced that the Department of Justice (DOJ) had requested a sale of either Turner Broadcasting, which owns CNN, or DirecTV before it would approve AT&T's acquisition of Time Warner. However, the agency said that it didn't request those sales, but merely presented them as options that would quell its antitrust concerns over the $85.4 billion deal. Speaking at the Dealbook conference today, AT&T CEO randall Stephenson confirmed that, saying, "I have never been told that the price of getting the deal done was selling CNN. And likewise I have never offered to sell CNN. There is absolutely no intention that we would ever sell CNN." He added that AT&T was also not willing to sell HBO or Warner Bros., which would also come along with Time Warner if the deal goes through. "You shouldn't expect that we would sell something larger [than CNN] to get the deal done. It's illogical. It's why we did the deal," he said.
AT&T may have to sell major assets to appease DOJ in Time Warner deal
Last year, AT&T announced that it was going to acquire Time Warner, a deal that was initially expected to clear by the end of this year with little to no regulatory hurdles. However, last week, reports surfaced that the US Department of Justice (DOJ) was considering whether to file an antitrust lawsuit against the merger as its talks with the two companies over the deal weren't nearing a solution. Now, sources are saying that the DOJ is withholding its approval and wants either Time Warner to sell Turner Broadcasting or AT&T to sell DirecTV.
Sky could sacrifice Sky News to ensure Fox merger
While the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) investigates the potential merger with Fox, Sky has warned that it may be forced to close down Sky News if it obstructs the approval of the deal. In a submission to the CMA last month, which was released this week, Sky told the regulator that it would "would likely be prompted to review" its position "in the event that the continued provision of Sky News in its current form unduly impeded merger and/or other corporate opportunities available in relation to Sky's broader business".
Fox News impartiality breaches could threaten Sky merger
As Fox waits to find out whether it will be allowed to complete its merger with broadcasting giant Sky, UK media regulator Ofcom today delivered a fresh blow to proceedings. The watchdog confirmed that two Fox News shows, hosted separately by Sean Hannity and Tucker Carlson, breached a number of broadcasting regulations, before the channel was removed from British TV screens in August.
T-Mobile and Sprint end merger talks
So much for T-Mobile's bid to rescue a potential merger with Sprint. The two carriers have ended their not-so-secret merger talks after they couldn't find "mutually agreeable terms." Neither side is specific about what went wrong, but their remarks suggest an uneven power balance. T-Mobile's John Legere said a union was appealing for a "variety of reasons," but that a deal had to provide "superior long-term value" for a network that was already doing well on its own. Sprint had the support of its owner SoftBank, but its statement was more conciliatory; it wouldn't say much more than that it was "best to move forward on our own."
Sprint and T-Mobile could merge in late October
There have been hints that Sprint and T-Mobile are seriously talking about a merger (again), but how likely is that union, really? Quite likely, if you ask Reuters' sources. They understand that the two carriers are "close" to agreeing on terms, and they could have a deal ready by late October. There are the usual caveats (the tipsters say there's still a chance things could fall apart), but it's notable that Sprint and T-Mobile are apparently confident enough that there's a timeline.
Fox's takeover of Sky referred to the UK's competition regulator
It's now been a full year since 21st Century Fox first confirmed its interest in buying out Sky. In that time, the deal has been referred to and cleared by the European Commission, scrutinised by communications regulator Ofcom and discussed numerous times in parliament without a firm approval or denial. The decision has now been pushed back even further after Culture Secretary Karen Bradley announced today that the merger will be passed to the the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) as part of a formal six-month review.
WSJ: Sprint has proposed a merger with Charter
Another day, another rumor of a deal bridging the worlds of cable and mobile involving Sprint. Tonight a report from Wall Street Journal claims that Sprint has proposed a merger with Charter, to create a media/telecom giant controlled by the Japanese company Softbank. Of course, since this is Sprint then nothing is so simple, as Bloomberg reporter Alex Sherman tweeted that according to a source, Charter has "no interest" in the arrangement. This news comes after the end of an exclusive negotiating period between Sprint and the combined forces of Charter/Comcast, however, Bloomberg reported those talks are continuing. Of course, Charter and even Comcast have been named in rumored arrangements with (Engadget parent company) Verizon, so while there's certainly interest in teaming up, it's unclear who might make a deal and when. The door is also open for merger talks to resume with T-Mobile, but so far we haven't seen any new magenta-tinged rumors flying around.
Inside LeEco's spectacular fall from grace
With additional reporting by Chris Ip and Richard Lai. Behind the doors of the five-star Bohao Radegast Hotel in Beijing's central business district on Monday, troubled Chinese tech conglomerate LeEco held an extraordinary shareholder's meeting to elect new directors. Outside, some two dozen protesters set up tables and held up signs asking to be paid what they were owed for services rendered. According to multiple reports, they had come from 20 cities all over China and were reportedly due about 33 million yuan (around $5 million) in all. Many of them demanded to see Jia Yueting, but the company's billionaire founder and public face was nowhere to be seen. LeEco's fall from grace has been spectacular. Once hailed as the "Netflix of China," the daring startup and its then-outspoken founder were bold enough to challenge Tesla and criticize Apple as "outdated." But in recent months, the company has faced a series of setbacks, and may be reaching its breaking point. Jia stepped down as chairman and CEO in May, while the company continues to fend off unhappy vendors who are protesting outside its Beijing headquarters. On the other side of the Pacific, LeEco has also massively scaled back its American operations, laying off hundreds of workers in the process, while facing two lawsuits from US TV maker Vizio. Faraday Future, a futuristic car company with close ties to LeEco, recently canceled its plans to build a $1 billion plant in Nevada as well. This is the tale of a company that grew too quickly. It shows how a ravenous appetite for growth without a solid financial foundation can cause a business to topple. Simply tracing LeEco's cash flow is a Herculean task, since its financial activity is obscured by a dizzying organizational structure comprising a publicly listed holdings company, privately owned organization and dozens of subsidiaries. It's incredible that LeEco was able to continue operations for as long as it did without getting into any real legal trouble. But since 2016, it has been slammed with several lawsuits. Manufacturing partners in Asia, including Zhejiang Haosheng Electronic Technology, Compal Electronics and Truly International Holdings have sued for outstanding debt. The most recent significant case was Vizio's $100 million claim for a failed $2 billion acquisition. From interviews Engadget conducted with unpaid vendors, former employees and investors, some of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity out of concern for their careers, it became apparent that LeEco's future may be in serious trouble.
Microsoft's cloud focus could mean yet more layoffs
Microsoft is going through another reorganization that could result in "thousands" of layoffs, particularly to its sales force, according to TechCrunch, Bloomberg and others. The company is reportedly shifting teams around to emphasize Azure cloud sales, rather than boxed software, which is rapidly becoming a dying business. So far, there's no news on exactly which groups and regions will be affected.
WSJ: Sprint is discussing a new deal with Charter/Comcast
Not that long ago, there was a report that the on again/off again merger talks between T-Mobile and Sprint had resumed, but tonight the Wall Street Journal reports they're on hold. That's apparently due to Sprint negotiating exclusively with the combined unit of Charter and Comcast. An unlikely result could be an acquisition of the fourth largest wireless carrier, or the two cable companies could invest in it to help improve the company's network, which they could then use to offer their wireless services instead of Verizon.
The FTC plans to block the DraftKings and FanDuel merger
Last November, fantasy sports sites DraftKings and FanDuel announced they would be merging -- a deal that was expected to finalize later this year. However, according to an Federal Trade Commission press release, the FTC will try to block the merger.
Facebook fined €110 million for misleading EU over WhatsApp takeover
After months of deliberation, the European Commission has ruled that Facebook intentionally mislead officials over its ability to utilize data following its acquisition of WhatsApp in 2014. As a result, the social network has been fined €110 million ($122 million or £94 million) and becomes the first company to be penalized under the Commission's Merger Regulation law since it was introduced in 2004.
Elon Musk turned down Uber’s self-driving partnership offer
A new book on Uber by Fortune's Adam Lashinsky is coming out soon, but Bloomberg has revealed one juicy anecdote ahead of time. CEO Travis Kalanick reportedly called up Tesla CEO Elon Musk to propose a partnership on self-driving cars, but Musk rebuffed the offer and even tried to talk him out of it.
The TV industry just edged closer to a giant merger
All that talk of major TV media buyouts just got more substantive. Reuters tipsters claim that Sinclair Broadcast Group, not 20th Century Fox as many suspected, is close to a deal to buy TV giant Tribune Media. Negotiations are reportedly still underway and might not pan out, but there's now a clear front runner. In fact, the sources maintain that Fox didn't even submit a bid -- so much for that talk of wanting more control over distributing media.
