Trump Won’t Approve AT&T—Time Warner Merger
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump said Saturday that if he is elected U.S. President his administration would not allow telecom major AT&T to acquire leading content player Time Warner.
The companies announced Saturday that they have entered into an agreement under which AT&T will acquire Time Warner in a stock-and-cash transaction valued at $107.50 per share.
The purchase price implies a total equity value of $85.4 billion and a total transaction value of $108.7 billion.
[ Also Read: Microsoft’s Reckless Decision to Acquire LinkedIn ]
Trump believes that the deal would lead to power imbalance in America’s corporate structure. “Too much concentration of power in the hands of too few,” Trump described the planned merger.
The companies, however, said that the deal combines Time Warner’s content specialization with AT&T’s customer relationships, pay TV subscriber base, and leading scale in TV, mobile and broadband distribution.
[ U.S. Election: Clinton – 32%, Trump – 25%, None – 43% ]
Although Trump claims he is a top businessman, in his campaign messaging he promises that as President he would work for the good of American workers and the poor. His stand against AT&T—Time Warner merger seems to be a part of this positioning.
The U.S. presidential election is scheduled to take place Tuesday, November 8, 2016.
Photo courtesy: Trump / Twitter
