The deal is more than a week away from being completed, one source told Bloomberg. The two companies are still negotiating a price, which could come close to USD 95 a share, depending on how much cash or stock is in the transaction. Two other people said the price could go as high as USD 100 per DirecTV share.
DirecTV had also drawn merger interest from rival Dish Network, Bloomberg reported earlier. However, Dish chairman Charline Ergen recently said he though the satellite-TV rival is too expensive to pursue.
DirecTV would give AT&T a national footprint, allowing it to bundle its mobile services with the TV offering. It also brings a foothold in Latin America, where DirecTV is active in several countries. DirecTV meanwhile would have a stronger offering by combining its TV services with AT&T's fixed and mobile services.
