Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA) and AT&T (NYSE: T) could be steppingstones to help Dish Network (Nasdaq: DISH) and DirecTV (Nasdaq: DTV) resurrect a merger that the FCC thought it buried nine years ago.
Joseph Clayton, Dish's new CEO, brought up both the idea of the merger based on a changed regulatory environment that's already allowed a Comcast-NBCUniversal marriage and is considering what to do about AT&T and T-Mobile.
"It's probably easier from a regulatory environment today than it was five to 10 years ago when it was originally proposed," Clayton told Bloomberg Television. "We're looking at anything that will help enhance shareholder value."
Not that it probably much matters, but the FCC might be in a position to approve such a satellite merger just for appearances' sake, said Stanford Bernstein analyst Craig Moffett. "It would be very difficult from a public relations standpoint, if the AT&T deal is approved, for the FCC to explain that Dish and DirecTV can't also merge," he said.
For more:
- Bloomberg has this story
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