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# AT&T in talks to combine WarnerMedia assets with Discovery

Discovery to launch streaming channel in January

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AT&T in talks to combine WarnerMedia assets with Discovery
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Deal would mark major shift in strategy amid streaming wars

AT&T Inc. is in talks to combine a big portfolio of media assets, including CNN, with Discovery Inc., according to people familiar with the matter, a deal that would mark a major strategy shift for the telecom giant as the traditional TV business faces prolonged pressure.

The talks, which cover CNN and other parts of AT&T’s
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WarnerMedia division, including the TNT and TBS cable channels, are advanced and an agreement could be reached by Monday, the people said. Should there be a deal, AT&T shareholders would own a big stake in the new entity, some of the people said. The people cautioned that a deal isn’t done yet and the talks could still fall apart. Other details of the potential transaction couldn’t be learned.

A deal between WarnerMedia and Discovery
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whose portfolio includes its namesake network and HGTV, would further consolidate a media business buffeted by cord-cutting and competition from streaming video.

The talks signal a major pullback by AT&T, which placed a massive bet on media with its 2018 acquisition of Time Warner Inc. for around $81 billion. That deal made it the world’s most indebted nonfinancial company.

Bloomberg earlier reported that AT&T was in talks to combine media assets with Discovery.

An expanded version of this report appears on WSJ.com.

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