From Investing.com: 2024-11-21 23:20:37

DirecTV has terminated its agreement to acquire Echostar’s satellite television business, including Dish TV, due to a failed debt-exchange offer. The deal would have created one of the largest pay TV distributors in the US with 20 million subscribers. Dish bondholders rejected the proposal, leading to the deal’s termination.

The proposed deal required Dish bondholders to exchange their debt for new debt in the merged entity at a discounted rate, resulting in a $1.57 billion haircut on the debt. DirecTV was set to pay $1 for Dish DBS, including Dish and Sling TV, while assuming $9.75 billion of Dish’s debt. The termination is effective Friday.

Echostar, co-founded by Charlie Ergen, did not immediately comment on the termination. The deal, announced in September, aimed to provide a lifeline to EchoStar, burdened with over $20 billion in debt. DirecTV and Dish have engaged in discussions over the years. Axios first reported on the termination, signaling a strategic consolidation in the shrinking pay-TV market.



Read more at Investing.com: DirecTV terminates Dish deal over failed debt swap By Reuters