DirecTV secures NFL Sunday Ticket deal vital to AT&T merger

The deal also expands the partnership to include Sunday Ticket live on mobile devices, likely to be a key promoted feature for AT&T.

Screenshot by Joan E. Solsman/CNET

DirecTV and the National Football League will remain BFFs.

The satellite TV company and the NFL said Wednesday that DirecTV would continue to be the exclusive provider of Sunday Ticket, which provides its customers with access to all out-of-market NFL games on Sunday.

DirecTV's deal with the NFL for a Sunday Ticket package is so vital to the service that AT&T's proposed $48.5 billion merger with the company could have been scuttled if it had fallen through. AT&T included an option to walk away from the DirecTV deal if the satellite provider failed to renew the exclusive NFL agreement.

Sunday Ticket will likely play a key role in AT&T's plans to bundle its nationwide mobile service with DirecTV's nationwide TV service. The announcement includes a specific reference to extending Sunday Ticket's streaming rights to mobile devices and via broadband. That could be a key exclusive feature that AT&T could bring to its smartphones and tablets.

Verizon has the rights to air home football games to its mobile devices under its NFL Mobile service, which is free to its subscribers. The rights were part of a broader sponsorship deal with the NFL.

Sunday Ticket, meanwhile, is a key driver of DirecTV's subscriber growth and customer loyalty. It's also one of the reasons DirecTV is seen as the premium satellite TV option over rival Dish Network.

AT&T had agreed to acquire DirecTV in May, with a deal expected to close within the next 12 months. One of the hanging issues when the deal was announced was the fate of Sunday Ticket.

"DirecTV's renewal of its agreement with the NFL to carry the Sunday Ticket package satisfies this condition in our merger agreement with DirecTV," AT&T said in a statement.

In late August, DirecTV was close to a deal with the NFL for a Sunday Ticket package that would increase its average annual rights fee to between $1.3 billion and $1.4 billion over the next decade, according to a report by Sports Business Journal. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

AT&T shares slipped 0.8 percent, to $34.96. DirecTV shares inched up 7 cents, to $86.59.

Roger Cheng Roger Cheng is the executive editor in charge of breaking news for CNET News. Prior to this, he was on the telecommunications beat and wrote for Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal for nearly a decade. He's a devoted Trojan alum and Los Angeles Lakers fan. See full bio

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Sprint and T-Mobile merger finally a reality

The Wall Street Journal is reporting the often rumored Sprint and T-Mobile merger is finally moving forward. The two companies have agreed to “broad outlines” that put T-Mobile’s value at $32 billion, or about $40 per share.

This deal isn’t official, but it’s expected to be during the early part of the summer. Of course, negotiations could fall through, but unlikely as it seems as though both companies really need this deal to happen. Sprint and T-Mobile are the 3rd and 4th largest wireless operators in the U.S., and it appears a deal between these two companies has the best chance of clearing the FCC.

If you remember, AT&T’s bid for T-Mobile fell through so it’s unlikely that the FCC would approve any combination of the major four operators if one of the companies were to be AT&T or Verizon Wireless. That leaves Sprint and T-Mobile, and to be honest, this marriage makes a lot of sense.

If Sprint and T-Mobile formally announce a deal, the actual merger probably wouldn’t take place until early next year since the approval process could take several months.

What do you guys think? Will this deal be a win or a loss for consumers?

source: WSJ

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