AT&T in Time Warner talks

US telecoms firm AT&T is reportedly in talks to take over Time Warner, owner of HBO, the CNN news network and Warner Bros.

Time Warner’s shares spiked 4.7% after reports about the merger emerged yesterday.

AT&T has been looking to grow its media operation recently after buying satellite TV provider DirecTV last year for US$48.5bn.

The move is part of a growing trend for telecoms firms to get into the content business. In April, Comcast Corp acquired DreamWorks Animation (DWA) for US$3.8bn.

In the same month, US telecoms giant Verizon took a 24.5% stake in DWA’s online youth network AwesomenessTV, valuing the latter at US$650m.

In August, meanwhile, Time Warner took a minority stake in US streaming service Hulu, joining Disney, 21st Century Fox and Comcast in the joint venture.

AT&T and Time Warner declined to comment.