Nearly two years after initially proposing its acquisition plans, AT&T announced on June 14, 2018, that it had officially completed the deal to purchase Time Warner for a sum of $85 billion.
AT&T first announced these plans back in October 2016, and soon after, was faced with a tremendous about of backlash from all sectors. The company most recently spent six weeks in court to determine if the acquisition violated any antitrust laws, but Judge Richard Leon told AT&T it could move forward on June 12.
It was expected that AT&T would finalize its purchase of Time Warner on June 20 to give the Justice Department proper time to make an appeal, but either AT&T decided to jump the gun or the Department admitted defeat.
Commenting on the deal, AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson said:
We're going to bring a fresh approach to how the media and entertainment industry works for consumers, content creators, distributors, and advertisers.
Now that AT&T owns Time Warner, this also means it's acquiring the other brands under Time Warner's belt — including Warner Bros., HBO, and Turner. As part of the deal, Time Warner's former CEO and Chairman, Jeff Bewkes, will be transitioning to a Senior Advisor position.
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