DirecTV to acquire rival Dish Network for $1!

Satellite TV giant DirecTV will acquire its longtime competitor, Dish TV, along with Sling TV for $1 and assume approximately $9.8 billion in debt.

The deal, announced on Monday, will see DirecTV take over Dish and Sling from current owner EchoStar. The move has been in the works for years and aims to address the growing challenge posed by streaming services like Netflix and Hulu, which have steadily eaten into the traditional pay-TV market.

The idea of a DirecTV-Dish merger has been circulating for over two decades, with an earlier attempt in 2002 being blocked by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) due to antitrust concerns. However, with the industry shifting drastically since then—particularly as more consumers opt for streaming services over satellite—the latest deal may have a better chance of getting regulatory approval.

DirecTV said on Monday it hopes the acquisition will allow it to offer smaller, more affordable content packages, providing a streamlined, one-stop-shop for entertainment.DirecTV CEO Bill Morrow said he sees the deal as an opportunity to cater to the growing number of customers who have turned away from traditional satellite services in favor of streaming. According to DirecTV, the company and Dish have lost a combined 63 percent of their satellite customers since 2016. The acquisition comes at a time of significant change for DirecTV’s former parent company, AT&T. On the same day as DirecTV’s announcement, AT&T disclosed that it would be selling its remaining 70 percent stake in the satellite company to private equity firm TPG for a reported $7.6 billion. This sale marks AT&T’s exit from the entertainment sector, a business it once dominated.

AT&T originally acquired DirecTV in 2015 for $48.5 billion but began scaling back its involvement after facing customer losses. By 2021, AT&T sold a 30 percent stake in DirecTV to TPG for $16.25 billion. The final sale of AT&T’s stake will be completed by the second half of 2025, with incremental payments throughout the next several years.