AT&T Showbiz and Celebrity Breaking News

WarneMedia parent AT&T is selling its Crunchyroll anime business to Funimation Global Group — a venture of Sony Pictures Entertainment and Sony Music Entertainment, for $1.175 billion in cash.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorAT&T inked a deal to sell its Crunchyroll anime business to Sony’s Funimation for $1.175 billion in cash, the companies announced.Funimation, a joint venture between Sony Pictures Entertainment and Sony Music Entertainment (Japan)’s Aniplex, has been a major rival to Crunchyroll in the global market for Japanese anime. AT&T, looking to reduce its debt load, has been looking for a buyer for Crunchyroll for several months.

Highly indebted WarnerMedia parent AT&T has received bids for DirecTV that value the satellite broadcaster at more than $15 billion, according to a report Wednesday in the Wall Street Journal.

AT&T's WarnerMedia is "ahead ofplan" on its HBO Max streaming service, nearing 12.6 million activated users, and can use the decision to bring its 2021 film slate to the service and cinemas to "accelerate that further" to "penetrate the market faster," the telecom giant's CEO told an investor conference on Tuesday.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorAT&T CEO John Stankey asserted that the release of Warner Bros.’s full 2021 movie slate on HBO Max and in theaters at the same time will be a “win-win-win” — for WarnerMedia, consumers and partners.Stankey acknowledged criticism that AT&T and WarnerMedia have faced from theater owners: “I know there’s a lot of noise out in the market, people with different viewpoints.” He added, “Anytime you’re going to change a model, it’s going to create a degree of noise.”But

HBO Max, which closed the third quarter at 8.6 million activated subscribers in the U.S., has added another four million to reach 12.6 million, according to AT&T CEO John Stankey.

Also Read: Warner Bros to Release All 2021 Movies in Theaters and on HBO Max SimultaneouslyOn Thursday, WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar announced the decision to put all ’21 WB movies on HBO Max on their theatrical release date.

When the news hit that WarnerMedia was shifting its entire 2021 WB film slate to debut on HBO Max and in theaters on the same days, the industry gasped. People were shocked that one of the biggest studios in the world was making such a bold move and seemingly setting up the 2021 box office for another disappointing, disastrous year.

Dade Hayes Finance EditorAT&T CFO John Stephens described the groundbreaking simultaneous release of Wonder Woman 1984 in theaters and on HBO Max as “a win-win in a difficult situation.”In an online appearance Friday at the Morgan Stanley European Media, Tech and Telecom Conference, he complimented WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar and his staff for “being collaborative and thinking differently to do something for the first time.”The release, which will be free for streaming subscribers on Christmas

AT&T chief financial officer John Stephens is set to retire in March 2021 after 28 years with the telecom and media giant. WarnerMedia CFO Pascal Desroches has been tapped to succeed Stephens, effective April 1, 2021, and until then will serve as AT&T’s senior executive vp of finance.

Dade Hayes Finance EditorJohn Stephens will retire as CFO of AT&T next March, ending a 28-year run at the company, and will hand the reins to WarnerMedia CFO Pascal Desroches.The change is slated to take effect on April 1. It comes as AT&T continues to work to lower its debt load and steer WarnerMedia through a major restructuring effort.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorAfter 28 years with AT&T, CFO John Stephens plans to retire next March. The company named WarnerMedia CFO Pascal Desroches as the successor to Stephens, effective April 1, 2021.

Former FCC chairman and U.S. ambassador to the European Union William Kennard has been named chairman of the board of directors for telecom giant and WarnerMedia parent company AT&T.

Jill Goldsmith Co-Business EditorWarnerMedia parent AT&T today named former FCC chairman William Kennard chairman of the telecom giant’s board effective in January when current chair (and former CEO) Randall Stephenson retires.AT&T announced its plan to elect an independent chairman when Stephenson, who held both positions since 2007, stepped down in April. COO John Stankey stepped up as CEO in July.

Cynthia Littleton Business EditorFormer FCC chief William Kennard has been named chairman of AT&T’s board of directors.Kennard has been a member of AT&T’s board of directors since 2014. The telco giant vowed to separate the chairman and CEO posts following the retirement in January of Randall Stephenson, who previously was chairman-CEO.Last July, Stephenson handed the CEO reins to his longtime lieutenant John Stankey.

Also Read: AT&T CEO John Stankey Is 'Not Optimistic' About Theatrical Recovery in Early 2021Stephenson stepped down as CEO of AT&T over the summer, with John Stankey replacing him. Kennard is set to take over as chairman of the board in January when Stephenson formally retires.

AT&T CEO John Stankey, who previously served as the CEO of WarnerMedia, will step down from the board of directors of shipping and logistics giant UPS. Stankey had been a UPS board member since 2014.

Jill Goldsmith Co-Business EditorAT&T said Monday it completed the sale of its wireless and wireline operations in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands to Liberty Latin America, taking in $1.95 billion.

There are few people in Hollywood that have serious power over the future of the industry. One of those men is John Stankey, the CEO of AT&T.

Telecom giant AT&T on Thursday reported its third-quarter results, the second set of financials and subscriber data fully affected by the novel coronavirus pandemic. The company said its quarterly figures included a $1.72 billion hit to quarterly earnings tied to the coronavirus pandemic, as well as $190 million in incremental costs tied to the pandemic.

AT&T CEO John Stankey said on Thursday that he feels better about the state of film and TV productions amid the coronavirus pandemic, but the outlook for the theatrical business remains uncertain nearing the end of the year, with the recovery likely to be "choppy." He also admitted that the Tenet release was no "home run," even though he said he was "happy" the studio went ahead with the theatrical release.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorAre we there yet?WarnerMedia is bringing its premium video programming to bored kids and other road-weary passengers through WarnerMedia Ride, a new video service for smartphones and tablets connected to in-car Wi-Fi hotspots connected to AT&T’s wireless network — available at no extra cost.Content in WarnerMedia Ride includes news and sports programming from Bleacher Report, Boomerang, Cartoon Network, CNN, TBS, TNT and other brands.

AT&T Inc. CEO John Stankey has defended moves by the telco and media giant to reorganize the management team at WarnerMedia to put a priority on creating and distributing content for streaming.

Todd Spangler NY Digital EditorWarnerMedia’s recent restructuring was “spot on,” and the company accelerated those changes to the media division — which had been eyed for 2021 — because of COVID to boost the streaming profile of HBO Max, according to AT&T CEO John Stankey.Stankey, speaking Monday at the Wall Street Journal’s WSJ Live streaming conference, praised WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar’s changes at the company.

Dade Hayes, Jill Goldsmith AT&T CEO John Stankey continues to express no misgivings over the launch of HBO Max in May, citing the unforeseeable impact of COVID-19 as its only real blemish.During a keynote session today kicking off the Wall Street Journal‘s Tech Live conference, Stankey pronounced himself “very happy” with the debut of the streaming service.

WarnerMedia parent AT&T's $1.1 billion sale of a majority stake in Central European Media Enterprises to Czech businessman Petr Kellner's PPF Group closed on Tuesday. AT&T, led by CEO John Stankey, decided last year to sell the asset.

Jill Goldsmith Co-Business EditorThe WarnerMedia parent was CME’s largest shareholder and announced Tuesday that it’s received the hefty payment and that it no longer backstops approximately $575 million in CME debt. AT&T acquired its stake in CME with the acquisition of Time Warner in 2018.

The European Union has approved WarnerMedia parent AT&T's $1.1 billion sale of a majority stake in Central European Media Enterprises to Czech businessman Petr Kellner's PPF Group. AT&T, led by CEO John Stankey, had last year unveiled the plan to sell the holding to reduce its debt.

bit the dust and rolled into a promo channel for HBO Max earlier this year. Reps for Peacock confirmed there are plans to air Season 3 at a later date, but did not disclose whether the series will be renewed for a fourth season.Also Read: 'Mr.

Dade Hayes Finance EditorAT&T has pledged to be carbon neutral across its global operations by 2035, with film and TV production at WarnerMedia one of the key areas of emphasis.Several other companies have made public vows to shrink their carbon footprints. Amazon introduced a Climate Pledge in 2019 to put companies on a path to carbon neutrality by 2040.

AT&T CEO John Stankey says the telecom and media conglomerate is using HBO Max and its fast-growing streaming strategy to weather the novel coronavirus pandemic. "Had we not done that and been in this situation, I feel we'd be real flat-footed," Stankey told the Goldman Sachs Communacopia Conference during a virtual appearance on Tuesday as he discussed the recent HBO Max launch.

Dade Hayes Finance EditorAT&T CEO John Stankey says he “couldn’t be more pleased” with the progress of HBO Max since it launched in May.Appearing online Tuesday at the annual Goldman Sachs Communacopia conference, Stankey acknowledged the initial numbers are not sky-high.

Jill Goldsmith Co-Business EditorThe FCC Monday granted AMC Networks’ motion to withdraw a complaint filed last month against AT&T that accused the media giant of abusing its market clout and favoring its own networks after merging with Time Warner.The complaint was withdraw after the two sides reached a new carriage agreement, according to an industry source.The Walking Dead parent alleged AT&T favors its own competing networks including HBO and TNT by insisting on “discriminatory” terms to

Dominic Patten Senior Editor, Legal & TV CriticCommunications chief Kevin Brockman is leaving WarnerMedia in the latest executive exit at the AT&T-owned company.On the job at the now Jason Kilar-run for just under a year and a half, former longtime Disney exec Brockman just informed staff this morning of his departure.Stepping back from his day-to-day responsibilities immediately, Brockman’s primary publicly stated aim before formally leaving at the end of the year will be to assist Christy

AT&T CFO John Stephens signaled during an appearance at an investor conference on Wednesday that the telecom giant wouldn't sell advertising technology unit Xandr despite recent reports and touted the theatrical experience tentpole films like Warner Bros.' Tenet provide. Speaking during a virtual Bank of America investor conference in a session that was webcast, he also discussed how the coronavirus pandemic has been affecting the business.

Dade Hayes Finance EditorAT&T CFO John Stephens saw Tenet in a theater, as did a large swath of the U.S.