On the heels of its deal for Time Warner, AT&T apparently is ready to dip into the M&A content pool again.
AT&T is nearing a deal to acquire all of Otter Media, the OTT video joint venture formed with The Chernin Group in 2014, Recode reported.
Recode expects the deal to close this summer, offering estimates that Otter Media could be valued at more than $1 billion (AT&T and The Chernin Group originally earmarked about $500 million for the J.V.).
It would also follows earlier reports that the sides were trying to formulate an agreement, and come after the recent the appointment of AT&T and DirecTV exec Tony Goncalves as CEO of Otter Media. Recode said the expectation is that Goncalves would end up reporting to John Stankey, who is now CEO of what’s now known as WarnerMedia.
RELATED: Goncalves Named CEO of Otter Media
If such a deal comes to fruition, AT&T would own a portfolio that includes Ellation, Fullscreen Media, Crunchyroll, VRV, Crunchyroll, and VRV, which runs an SVOD aggregation and bundling service.
AT&T is also in discussions to acquire digital ad-tech company AppNexus for about $1.6 billion, and take on a stronger position in that area against companies such as Verizon and Google, according to The Wall Street Journal.
