AT&T Pondering Huge 'Land Grab' Media Merger

A new communications behemoth may be emerging soon: Insiders tell Bloomberg that over the last few weeks, senior execs from AT&T and Time Warner have been discussing strategies including a possible merger. Reuters notes that telecom companies like AT&T have been making a "land grab" for media companies in recent years, and a merger would give AT&T assets including HBO, CNN, and Warner Bros. studios.

The Los Angeles Times reports that Time Warner is valued at $65 billion and AT&T at $238 billion. A merger of the two would create an entity big enough to create major antitrust concerns, and it's not clear whether a Clinton or Trump administration would allow the deal. Time Warner shares jumped 4.7% after merger rumors surfaced Thursday, while AT&T shares fell 1.8%. (Verizon's deal to buy Yahoo has run into difficulties.)