AT&T exploring Deal to sell off DIRECTV.

[CSM]

I don't know current prices of a DTV equipped satellite but with launch the total has to be close to $1 billion these days and you better set aside a full year for design, mfr and a launch date. Last I heard from DirecTV employees that deal with this, there will be no more satellites built and launched. If ATT says publicly they will deliver all content via broadband and pull the plug on satellites, why would you question it? Do those thinking otherwise know something that ATT doesn't?

AT&T wouldn't launch a new satellite but would the new owner be able to? Also would the new owner be able to build new boxes? If they didn't have the ability to build the new satellites and boxes, they would just be buying DTV for the cash flow but it would only be for 10 years. Would they see a return on their investment in 10 years?

 

[Juan]

AT&T wouldn't launch a new satellite but would the new owner be able to? Also would the new owner be able to build new boxes? If they didn't have the ability to build the new satellites and boxes, they would just be buying DTV for the cash flow but it would only be for 10 years. Would they see a return on their investment in 10 years?

There is no new owner..just a new investor..only selling a piece

 

[slice1900]

Could DTV's satellite's be used for Internet only? What if the Private Equity Firm sold parts of DTV to other companies? Amazon's satellite's will use the KA band.

No, for internet they need lots and lots of spot beams - ideally ones that can be created on the fly like the Spaceway satellites (which were originally designed for internet, which is why they were always a kludge for Directv service)

 

[Inclined Orbit]

No, for internet they need lots and lots of spot beams - ideally ones that can be created on the fly like the Spaceway satellites (which were originally designed for internet, which is why they were always a kludge for Directv service)

Plus the Spaceway sats were designed to be uplinked from reasonably sized consumer dishes if used for Internet where the mainline DirecTV satellites were not. Modern geo Internet satellites are very complex with mind boggling spot beams, etc. I read where the latest sats launched for ViaSat Internet service were the largest satellites ever built for anyone. Their fleet of ground stations to feed all those spot beams is also very impressive.

 

[Jimbo]

You do understand that it takes years to plan, design and build new satellites, by that time DirecTV and Dish ( they have no new satellites planned either) will have lost so many customers and the economics of satellite TV will be so bad, it will be obvious the business is in a death spiral.

Also do not forget about new equipment, boxes, they also have nothing planned and they can take years to develop, especially now since they have no one doing so.

Lastly, even if they do sell all of DirecTV, that will take at least a year ( Government), it is not like change the locks and lets launch a new bird, it will be 2-3 years after a sell to do that, 4 years from now.

I know you have doubts about Star Link, but you better hope it works out, it might be the only hope for rural folks.

I do believe most of what you said, however, it would take time to build more Sats, its not as bad as you think, seeing that the current Sats up there now will last till at least 2030, they have time .... but they won't go that route when they want to get rid of it.

 

[slice1900]

I do believe most of what you said, however, it would take time to build more Sats, its not as bad as you think, seeing that the current Sats up there now will last till at least 2030, they have time .... but they won't go that route when they want to get rid of it.

Other than spot beams, Directv would be able to get by with fewer satellites by 2030 due to stuff like MPEG2 SD duplicates going away, better encoders, and probably the number of channels decreasing over time as duplicates (why are there so many Disney channels when they all show pretty much the same stuff, for example) are eliminated.

So if they lost D11 and D12 around that time they might be able to say "oh well, we certainly don't need that capacity for CONUS. If ATSC 3.0 has been fully rolled out and SFNs are used, almost everyone would be able to pick up their locals via a reasonable indoor antenna and spot beams may not matter too much.

That assumes satellite still has enough of a market to even be a going concern by 2030. We'll have to see, I think it won't matter when the satellites need to be retired then because the whole service will need to be retired by then.

 

[Inclined Orbit]

Other than spot beams, Directv would be able to get by with fewer satellites by 2030 due to stuff like MPEG2 SD duplicates going away, better encoders, and probably the number of channels decreasing over time as duplicates (why are there so many Disney channels when they all show pretty much the same stuff, for example) are eliminated.

So if they lost D11 and D12 around that time they might be able to say "oh well, we certainly don't need that capacity for CONUS. If ATSC 3.0 has been fully rolled out and SFNs are used, almost everyone would be able to pick up their locals via a reasonable indoor antenna and spot beams may not matter too much.

That assumes satellite still has enough of a market to even be a going concern by 2030. We'll have to see, I think it won't matter when the satellites need to be retired then because the whole service will need to be retired by then.

What about must carry? Did someone eliminate the need for DirecTV and Dish to carry locals?

 

[Don in CT]

What about must carry? Did someone eliminate the need for DirecTV and Dish to carry locals?

How can they be must carry if they are always in carriage disputes.

 

[Inclined Orbit]

How can they be must carry if they are always in carriage disputes.

I'll see if I can remember some of this stuff. There are clauses in the must carry rules like satellite providers are only required to carry a minimum number of identified top designated market areas. If a station within one of those top markets requests payment for retransmission, then the satellite carrier has no obligation to carry that channel. If the satellite provider wishes to carry a channel outside the required markets, then they must carry all local channels within that market.

So the disputes between DirecTV, Dish and some local channels allows the satellite provider to drop them like hot doo doo if they are asking for more $$ than its worth to the satellite provider. Of course the TV station tells all its viewers about the bad bad satellite company and how they are taking channels away from paid customers, but there is no money to be made from local channels except for the lure of having them delivered with premium channels in one system and no extra TV antenna on the roof and DirecTV found out a lot of customers really want that.

 

[slice1900]

What about must carry? Did someone eliminate the need for DirecTV and Dish to carry locals?

They are subject to "carry one carry all" so they have to carry all eligible stations (or at least negotiate to carry them if they charge) in a DMA if they carry any. Eligible is defined as the primary channel (-1) for all full power stations.

They aren't required to carry locals in all markets - otherwise Directv would have had to fill in those remaining 12 DMAs where they don't offer any locals at all. Nothing (other than pissed off customers who would leave) stops them from dropping locals in any other market though obviously they wouldn't do it for no reason.

 

[CSM]

They don't have to carry the sub-channels.

 

[CSM]

Looks like AT&T gamble of releasing Wonder Woman '84 in theaters and on HBO/Max. Would this be another reason AT&T may just want to focus on HBO/Max and sell its other TV services?

‘Wonder Woman 3’ Is Happening; Patty Jenkins & Gal Gadot Returning – Deadline

 

[odbrv]

Looks like AT&T gamble of releasing Wonder Woman '84 in theaters and on HBO/Max. Would this be another reason AT&T may just want to focus on HBO/Max and sell its other TV services?

‘Wonder Woman 3’ Is Happening; Patty Jenkins & Gal Gadot Returning – Deadline

Good luck in getting the movie on HBOMAX. I have tried 5 times since Christmas and only get an error message. They are just so Technology limited.

 

[ncted]

Good luck in getting the movie on HBOMAX. I have tried 5 times since Christmas and only get an error message. They are just so Technology limited.

I didn't have any issues with it on Christmas Day. Looked great! Too bad the movie wasn't better overall.

 

[Don in CT]

I didn't have any issues with it on Christmas Day. Looked great! Too bad the movie wasn't better overall.

Ya, the reviews I have heard have not been great.

 

[lparsons21]

Ya, the reviews I have heard have not been great.

It was an OK movie that I’m glad I didn’t pay for and go to the theater and see.

 

[lparsons21]

I didn't have any issues with it on Christmas Day. Looked great! Too bad the movie wasn't better overall.

I didn’t either. Played and looked great. Just not a great movie overall though I did enjoy it.

 

[CSM]

Looks like AT&T may have found a buyer for DTV.

This is interesting part of the article.

AT&T May Have Finally Found A DIRECTV Buyer, Churchill IV Is Overpaying (NYSE:CCIV) | Seeking Alpha

"I’ve also noted in the past that DIRECTV could potentially face a disastrous exodus of customers immediately after being sold. DIRECTV is unique in the pay-TV industry in being the beneficiary of a “transference effect” that is highly unlikely to persist when it is separated from AT&T. But Churchill IV may have solved this problem by insisting that AT&T’s other two pay-TV operations, U-Verse and AT&T TV, be sold with DIRECTV together, thereby transferring AT&T’s entire pay-TV operation to the buyer. So for now I’m going to leave it here."

 

[Juan]

Looks like AT&T may have found a buyer for DTV.

This is interesting part of the article.

AT&T May Have Finally Found A DIRECTV Buyer, Churchill IV Is Overpaying (NYSE:CCIV) | Seeking Alpha

"I’ve also noted in the past that DIRECTV could potentially face a disastrous exodus of customers immediately after being sold. DIRECTV is unique in the pay-TV industry in being the beneficiary of a “transference effect” that is highly unlikely to persist when it is separated from AT&T. But Churchill IV may have solved this problem by insisting that AT&T’s other two pay-TV operations, U-Verse and AT&T TV, be sold with DIRECTV together, thereby transferring AT&T’s entire pay-TV operation to the buyer. So for now I’m going to leave it here."

Just another buy out firm....NOT good news for subs

 

[Don in CT]

Looks like AT&T may have found a buyer for DTV.

This is interesting part of the article.

AT&T May Have Finally Found A DIRECTV Buyer, Churchill IV Is Overpaying (NYSE:CCIV) | Seeking Alpha

"I’ve also noted in the past that DIRECTV could potentially face a disastrous exodus of customers immediately after being sold. DIRECTV is unique in the pay-TV industry in being the beneficiary of a “transference effect” that is highly unlikely to persist when it is separated from AT&T. But Churchill IV may have solved this problem by insisting that AT&T’s other two pay-TV operations, U-Verse and AT&T TV, be sold with DIRECTV together, thereby transferring AT&T’s entire pay-TV operation to the buyer. So for now I’m going to leave it here."

Probably the only viable option for AT&T. Get out of the TV provider business altogether.