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Comcast to buy ...

Discussion in 'Sports and News' started by MileHigh, Feb 12, 2014.

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  1. MileHigh

    MileHigh Moderator Staff Member

    Time Warner Cable for ...

    Wait for it ...

    $45 billion.

    That's correct. No decimal point.

    I loathe Comcast and will do everything in my power to never go back to it again. Ever. And I've read many dreadful stories about TWC. So enjoy that marriage.

    Still, this is a Ho. Lee Fuk game-changer in the pay-TV world.
     
    MileHigh, Feb 12, 2014
    #1
  2. YankeeFan

    YankeeFan Well-Known Member

    Didn't see that coming.

    Is satellite big enough for DOJ to allow it? What percentage of the cable market will they have?
     
    YankeeFan, Feb 12, 2014
    #2
  3. MileHigh

    MileHigh Moderator Staff Member

    They're Nos. 1 and 2 in cable, so, um, a lot.

    If it goes through, they would have to allow Dish and DirecTV to meet at the altar, as has been rumored over the years, though Dish is a goofy company.
     
    MileHigh, Feb 12, 2014
    #3
  4. LongTimeListener

    LongTimeListener Well-Known Member

    I thought the FCC threshold was the cable industry as a whole couldn't control more than 70 percent of the market, and they always find a way to hover right at 67-68.

    Also, I understand that everybody hates Comcast and I know I'm in the minority, but at least out here they provide pretty good service at a pretty comparable price. (This assumes you still want a landline, as I do, and the bundling that goes with it.)

    And as corporate entities go, I hate the NFL far more than I hate Comcast, so I am looking quite forward to them having the added leverage the next time Goodell and those assholes try to fuck with us with NFL Network again.
     
    LongTimeListener, Feb 12, 2014
    #4
  5. Point of Order

    Point of Order Active Member

    If it's true that Comcast is throttling Netflix I hope Comcast burns in hell.
     
    Point of Order, Feb 13, 2014
    #5
  6. TigerVols

    TigerVols Well-Known Member

    Really?

    Everyone in the cable TV industry saw it coming for weeks.
     
    TigerVols, Feb 13, 2014
    #6
  7. Mark2010

    Mark2010 Active Member

    Comcast bought out TW in our market a few years back. I've had them in three different markets over the past 15 years and really like them, largely because they offer most of the channels that I tend to watch. Haven't really done a cost analysis, but my monthly bill seems about the same as it did with other companies.
     
    Mark2010, Feb 13, 2014
    #7
  8. The Big Ragu

    The Big Ragu Moderator Staff Member

    I'm not in the cable industry, but Charter Cable made a bid for TWC last month, and TWC rejected it. I believe Charter had begun gearing up for a proxy fight. TWC's board of directors had to do something.

    It looks like Comcast came in close to TWC's asking price -- and above where the stock has been trading. If you are a Time Warner shareholder, you are waking up to a little bump in the value of your stock today.
     
    The Big Ragu, Feb 13, 2014
    #8
  9. DanOregon

    DanOregon Well-Known Member

    So with more leverage, this will mean that Comcast will have more control over carriage fees and the price of cable will come down. Right?
     
    DanOregon, Feb 13, 2014
    #9
  10. The Big Ragu

    The Big Ragu Moderator Staff Member

    Don't know how cable pricing works. But what you do you mean by more leverage?
     
    The Big Ragu, Feb 13, 2014
    #10
  11. DanOregon

    DanOregon Well-Known Member

    They can haggle with ESPN and other content providers to lower their per customer fees.
     
    DanOregon, Feb 13, 2014
    #11
  12. The Big Ragu

    The Big Ragu Moderator Staff Member

    Maybe. But I am not sure why you assume a merger changes those negotiations much. Time Warner and Comcast aren't in the same markets currently. Maybe you're right and negotiating as one company, rather than two, is an advantage.

    I haven't ever thought about this before just now, but TWC has seemed to have fought those fights, while Comcast hasn't. Yet, Comcast seems to have done better in not bleeding subscribers than TWC. I wonder if TWC's fights over carriage fees -- for example, the shitstorm with CBS last year -- has hurt it, rather than helped, and Comcast not going to war has been better for business.

    If that is the case -- not saying it is, just thinking out loud -- I wouldn't expect this to have much impact on carriage fees. The lesson learned would have been that those fights are bad for business.
     
    The Big Ragu, Feb 13, 2014
    #12
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