Mexico: AT&T-Time Warner get conditioned approval

AT&T has cleared the latest hurdle in its move to acquire Time Warner after Mexican regulators gave the deal a conditioned greenlight.

The Federal Telecommunications Institute (IFT) and the Federal Economic Competition Commission (COFECE) approved the pending deal on August 22, according to a statement from AT&T.

IFT announced in a statement that the approval was conditioned to the merged entity complying with a series of remedies related to concerns that it could collude with paid-TV incumbent Televisa. Among the remedies, the regulators required the recusal of all relevant executives and board members from decisions to source pay channels such as STAR by Televisa affiliate, Sky, in which AT&T owns a stake, and the separation of AT&T/Time Warner-owned HBO LAG from the merged entity’s content sourcing operations.

The companies said they expect the deal to close by the end of the year.

In October last year AT&T closed an agreement to acquire Time Warner, which owns the CNN and HBO television networks, as well as Warner Bros Studios.

AT&T and Time Warner still expect the transaction to close by the end of 2017.

Full Content: El Financiero

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