Third-Quarter Media Mergers Total $30.3M: PwC

Merger and acquisition activity in the media and telecommunication business is being spurred by content deals as the industry prepares for the streaming wars.

According to PwC, deals worth $30.3 billion were announced during the third quarter, up 69% from a year ago. The number of deals declined 29% to 184. The value of the deals was down 17% from Q2, but the total number of transactions was up 18%.

The total includes the combination of CBS and Viacom. Also in the broadcast sector, The Walt Disney Co. sold its share in the YES Network to a consortium that includes the Sinclair Broadcast Group, the Yankees and Amazon.

“Q3 effectively marks the calm before the storm--the storm that is DTC OTT platforms, which will seismically shift the Entertainment & Media landscape,” said Bart Spiegel, U.S. technology, media & telecommunications partner at PwC.

Looking ahead to the fourth quarter and beyond, PwC said it expects to see M&A trend towards OTT-driven content and data and artificial-intelligence driven deals, while a consolidation of digital publishing platforms begins to take shape.

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.

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Third-Quarter Media Mergers Total $30.3B: PwC