AT&T Expands Amid Justice Department Opposition of $85 Billion Time Warner Deal

AT&T and Time Warner is facing more opposition to its $85 Billion deal. According to CNBC, the Justice Department filed documents Thursday to appeal the approval in a June court decision that green lit the merger.

During the summer of 2018, AT&T won a major battle when Judge Richard Leon declared that the merger with Time Warner did not violate Anti-Trust laws. This decision cleared the way for AT&T’s $85 Billion purchase of the mass-media giant to go forward. This major purchase going through could pave the way for more deals between technology and telecom companies. 

The acquisition of Time Warner was not AT&T’s only recent deal. The company also reached an agreement to acquire AppNexus. The New York-based technology company uses cloud-based data collection to aid marketers and publishers with ad placement.  “Ad tech unites real-time analytics and technology with our premium TV and video content. So, we went out and found the strongest player in the space.” The deal is projected to close during the 3rd quarter of 2018.” Brian Lesser, CEO of Advertising and Analytics at AT&T said. 

AT&T is also partnering with Nokia. As a part of the deal, AT&T’s subscribers will utilize Nokia’s Worldwide IoT Network Wing. The Iot  Network Wing allows everyday items embedded with electronics or sensors to communicate, exchange date and better integrate with each other. 

In addition to announcing multiple acquisitions, AT&T reported $38 Billion in earnings during the first fiscal quarter of 2018, down from $39.4 Billion reported during the same period in 2017. While the numbers are slightly down, a decrease in revenue could be the start of higher earnings in the future for the telecom giant.