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AT&T Inc. recorded a $ 15.5 billion charge on its pay TV business, reflecting damage caused by the cord cut on its DirecTV satellite unit even as the growth of the company’s HBO Max streaming service s ‘accelerated.
The depreciation created a loss in the fourth quarter as the media and telecommunications giant assesses the potential sale of its pay-TV assets and executives focus their investments on new technologies. The company announced quarterly revenue declines in its legacy video units and WarnerMedia, offsetting gains in its core wireless telephony division.
Executives called the non-cash accounting fee a sign of the aging pay-TV unit, with the Dallas-based company promoting an internet streaming model that gives its content production business a direct line with viewers.
“Our biggest and most important bet is HBO Max,” CEO John Stankey said on a conference call Wednesday. Executives plan to expand the service’s presence in other countries this year and launch an ad-supported version in the second quarter.
Overall, AT&T posted a fourth quarter loss of $ 13.89 billion, or $ 1.95 per share, compared to profit of $ 2.39 billion, or 33 cents per share, a year earlier . Revenue fell 2.4% to $ 45.7 billion.
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