THAT THE PARTIES AGREED TO THANK
YOU VERY MUCH.
>> WAS THERE POLITICAL
MOTIVATION BEHIND THE CHALLENGE,
SIR?
LIZ: OKAY, LET'S BRING IN
JONATHAN HOENIG ON THIS SWEEPING
REJECTION OF THE GOVERNMENT'S
LAWSUIT TRYING TO BLOCK THE AT&T
AND TIME-WARNER $85 BILLION
MERGER.
JONATHAN, THE
QUESTION-AND-ANSWERS WITH THE
LAWYER FOR THE AT&T SIDE OF THE
CASE, JONATHAN, HE WAS SAYING NO
DIVESTMENT OF CNN, SO AT&T GETS
TO OWN GAME OF THRONES, DIRECTV
AND MORE.
YOUR REACTION.
>> AND THIS IS A RESOUNDING WIN
FOR AT&T LIZ AND HOPEFULLY, FOR
THE MEDIA INDUSTRY AND THE
INDUSTRY AT LARGE.
ANTI-TRUST WHICH IS WHAT THE
GOVERNMENT IS ABOUT HERE, IS
REGULATION AND SPECIFICALLY
REGULATION OF COMPANIES WHOSE
EFFORTS REALLY SIMPLY TO MERGE
TO BECOME MORE PRODUCTIVE, SO
THIS IS OBVIOUSLY BULLISH FOR
THE STOCKS BUT IF IT GETS ALSO
BULLISH FOR THE INDUSTRY AND
ALSO FOR THE BULL MARKET AND NOW
THESE BIG COMPANIES ARE GOING TO
BE ABLE TO GET TO SCALE THEY
REALLY NEED TO COMPETE.
LIZ: BECAUSE AMAZON AND NETFLIX
WITH STREAMING, JONAS, WHAT
ABOUT THE LITTLE GUYS WALLET .
WHAT ABOUT THEIR POCKETBOOKS
BECAUSE THE REAL BACK STORY IS
THERE ARE ONLY FOUR OR FIVE
TELECOM GIANTS IN THIS COUNTRY.
THEY DOMINATE THE MARKET.
THEY'RE THE ONES DICTATING WHAT
YOUR CABLE BILL AND PHONE BILL
IS.
PEOPLE DON'T LIKE HOW EXPENSIVE
IT'S GETTING GO AHEAD.
>> YEAH, BUT THE ACTUAL WHY THE
SERVICE IS GETTING CHEAPER AND
IT'S EXPENSIVE FOR A LOT OF
COMPLICATED REASONS THAT INCLUDE
PAYING FOR CONTENT, THE SLOW WAY
NOT BUYING A COMPANY THAT OWNS
CONTENT.
IT'S NOT REALLY, LOOK THERE WAS
A DAY WHERE THIS MERGER
SHOULDN'T HAVE GONE THROUGH NO
QUESTION FIVE, 10, 15 YEARS AGO
THIS WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN GREAT
FOR CONSUMERS BUT IT IS A CASH
COW BUSINESS, THAT'S WHY THE
DIVIDEND IS SO HIGH AND THEY'RE
NOT IN A POWERFUL POSITION LIKE
GOOGLE OR NETFLIX OR AMAZON AND
IT'S A LITTLE DESPERATE THEY
POSSIBLY OVERPAID, CERTAINLY
LIKE WITH DIRECTV BUT AT THE END
OF THE DAY PEOPLE ARE MOVING
AWAY FROM THE $200 DIRECTV
BUNDLE TO THE $40 DIRECTV NOW
BUNDLE AND THE MARGINS ARE
SLOWLY GOING DOWN AND INVESTORS
DON'T THINK IT HAS A LOT OF CASH
FLOW POTENTIAL DOWN THE ROAD
EVEN THOUGH RIGHT NOW ITS VERY
HIGH MARGIN IS VERY LOW COST
BUSINESS IN ITS EXISTING
CUSTOMERS BUT THEY NEED TO HAVE
THE FREE HBO DEAL TO MAKE YOU
PAY FOR THE PHONES DOWN THE ROAD
>> JONATHAN WE'RE POPPING UP
COMCAST AND 21ST CENTURY FOR A
REASON NOW IT'S COMCAST VERSUS
DISNEY JONATHAN YOU COULD EXPECT
NOR M & A DEALS BECAUSE COMCAST
GOES AFTER 21ST CENTURY FOX'S
ASSETS.
>> AND WHAT IT ULTIMATELY LOOKS
LIKE, E-MAC, WE REALLY HAVE NO
IDEA.
IT WASN'T TOO LONG AGO WE WERE
DEBATING WHETHER OR NOT NETFLIX
WOULD SURVIVE HAVING GIVEN UP
THE DVD BUSINESS.
THAT REALLY WASN'T TOO LONG AGO
THEY'VE GONE INTO RESHAPE THE
ENTERTAINMENT AS WE KNOW IT AND
THAT PROCESS CONTINUES SO WHAT
AT&T, WHAT THIS CONTENT FROM
TIME-WARNER ULTIMATELY LOOKS
LIKE HOW IT'S DELIVERED LIZ WE
DON'T KNOW.
WE DO KNOW THAT NOW THESE MAJOR
AMERICAN COMPANIES WILL BE ABLE
TO COMPETE INTERNATIONALLY
BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT GOING TO BE
HELD BACK BY THE GOVERNMENT.
LIZ: WELL THAT'S A GOOD POINT.
JONATHAN JUST RAISED AN
IMPORTANT POINT BECAUSE OVERSEAS
, PEOPLE GET THEIR
STREAMING ON THE CHEAP, FOR LIKE
A BUCK A MONTH IN SOME COUNTRIES
WE'RE SEEING.
AND JONAS, THAT'S THE REAL BACK
STORY IT'S THE GUYS WITH THE
BALANCE SHEETS IN THE UNITED
STATES WHO ARE GOING TO SURVIVE
NETFLIX IS ALL IN BALANCE SHEET
DEBT, INCLUDING THE SHAREHOLDER
EQUITY SO NETFLIX COULD GET
BOUGHT OUT.
I MEAN WE'RE SEEING A WHOLE UP
HEAR ALL GOING ON AND LANDSCAPE
OF STREAMING CONTENT RIGHT NOW J
ONAS.
>> THE GOVERNMENT HAS ALL THESE
COMPANIES ARE HERE ALL THE
BIGGEST OF MEDIA TELECOM
COMPANIES ALL THE INTERNET
COMPANIES SO I DON'T KNOW HOW
THEY'VE BEEN HELD BACK IN FACT
THEY HAVEN'T BEEN REGULATED MUCH
ESPECIALLY THE INTERNET AREA,
PART OF THE REASON THEY'VE GROWN
SO MUCH OUR INTERNET IS CRAPPY
COMPARED TO OTHER COUNTRIES
PARTIALLY BECAUSE OF THE SIZE OF
OUR COUNTRY BUT ALSO ISSUES
WHERE THE GOVERNMENT DIDN'T
DEVELOP ONE STANDARD AND
COMPETING WITH EACH OTHER AND
THEN YOU STILL GET DSL ACCOUNTS
THAT ARE OFFERING LIKE A DIAL-UP
SPEED IN RURAL AREAS PAYING $50
A MONTH IT'S NOT A TERRIFIC
SYSTEM IN AMERICA FOR THE
INTERNET AND THAT'S THE
COMMODITY UTILITY GRADE PART
THAT IF ANYTHING NEEDS LOOKED AT
IT'S THAT.
THE MEDIA PART IS VERY VIBRANT,
COMPETITIVE, NETFLIX, AMAZON
DOES THAT AREA NEEDS NO
GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT AT LEAST IF
YOU WANT TO WORRY ABOUT IT'S
WHAT IF TRUMP ADMINITRATION
STARTS CHARGING NETFLIX TO
STREAM CONTENT TO THE AT&T
SUBSCRIBERS BUT NOT FOR HBO.
LIZ: EXACTLY THAT'S THE PROBLEM
AND WE'LL BE STAYING ON THAT