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DirecTV has announced it will no longer continue the process of acquiring and merging with DISH Network after previously signaling its intent to do so.
In late September, the satellite provider announced it would purchase its competitor for $1, with TPG — the private equity-backed parent company of DirecTV — assuming all of DISH Network’s debt in a deal that would also see the company purchase the remaining stake from AT&T.
The deal needed to be approved by DISH Network bondholders, which contested the move, leading DirecTV to abandon plans to make the acquisition.
“A successful exchange was a condition for acquiring the Dish video business,” a DirecTV spokesperson said. “Given the outcome of the EchoStar exchange, DirecTV will have no choice but to terminate the acquisition of Dish by midnight on Nov. 22.”
A merger would have seen roughly 20 million subscribers between the two brands. In 2015, the two brands combined would have featured around 35 million subscribers.
It isn’t the first time a merger between the two companies has been discussed. The U.S. government blocked a proposed $19 billion merger of the companies in 2002. At the time, EchoStar — DISH Network parent company — was forced to pay a $600 million breakup fee to then DirecTV owner Hughes Electronics. There were reports as far back as 2014 that the CEO of the two companies were exploring a merger, but could never come to a concrete agreement.
After EchoStar released its third-quarter financial results, the company’s stock price dropped 13% before the news of the breakdown in talks with TPG was announced.
