AT&T’s proposed $85 billion takeover of Time Warner took another important step forward this week when Mexico regulators signed off on the transaction.
The Instituto Federal de Telecomunicaciones (IFT) and the Comisión Federal de Competencia Económica (COFECE) both approved the deal.
“We appreciate the work of both COFECE and IFT to review, analyze and approve the AT&T-Time Warner merger on its merits,” said David McAtee, senior executive vice president and general counsel for AT&T, in a statement. “The merger of our two companies will bring together the world’s best premium content with the networks to deliver that content to every screen, however customers want it.”
After this latest development, AT&T and Time Warner still anticipate the deal will be officially closed by the end of 2017.
RELATED: AT&T-Time Warner deal gets approval from European Commission
The OK from Mexico regulators arrives months after the European Commission officially signed off on the deal as well. The companies are still pursuing the approval of the U.S. Justice Department. But recent reports have indicated that the deal is in the final stages of the approval process. According to The Wall Street Journal, the deal is now being discussed by regulators in terms of merger conditions that will be placed on the combined company.
According to Bloomberg, before the deal is given the U.S. government’s go-ahead, AT&T is being asked to make vows of good behavior, including not granting unfair preference for its own programming. If the deal is approved, AT&T will own Warner Bros. Pictures, HBO and Turner networks including CNN, TBS and TNT.