Report: AT&T Discussed Buying Time Warner

AT&T and Time Warner have discussed a potential merger, according to a published report.

AT&T, which acquired DirecTV last year for $48.5 billion, is now looking to acquire content to fill its pipelines, according to a story by Bloomberg.

The report quotes on source who described Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes as a willing seller at the right price.  

Related: FTC Challenges Court Rejection of AT&T Throttling Action

Time Warner stock closed at $82.99, up almost 5% Thursday. It traded as high as $86 when the news of the conversations with AT&T broke.

Bewkes rejected an $85 a share offer from Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox in 2014.

Bloomberg said the talks between AT&T and Time Warner were informal and dealt with a number of potential business strategies.

Related: Time Warner Invests in You.i TV App Platform

AT&T has grown its footprint in the TV and broadband distribution business,  and now is focusing on expanding into the media and entertainment parts of the business through acqusitions.

According to the report, neither company commented.

Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.