Friday, February 26, 2021

AT&T To Spin Out DIRECTV

AT&T and private equity investor TPG Capital said on Thursday afternoon that the two plan to spin out a new company, which will include DIRECTV, AT&T TV, and U-verse, separating those operations into a new DIRECTV. According to the companies, the enterprise value for the new company is $16.25 billion. It's unclear how that spinout will impact Southern California, however, DIRECTV has significant operations in El Segundo, and AT&T's Entertainment Group also has major operations in the Los Angeles area. According to AT&T, the move will allow DIRECTV to "operate with renewed focus to deliver fantastic video services and a superior customer experience." The moves comes after AT&T had spent several years trying to tie together the video delivery services of DIRECTV with its entertainment assets. The newly independent DIRECTV will be led by Bill Morrow, currently CEO of AT&T's video unit.