Viacom news about it reaching a deal with AT&T has VIA stock up on Monday.
The deal between Viacom (NASDAQ:VIA,VIAB) and AT&T (NYSE:T) has to do with the distribution of Viacom’s channels though AT&T’s DirecTV. This is a renewal of the previous deal between the two groups and will allow customers to continue to view VIA’s channels through the satellite service.
Leading up to the signing of this new deal, Viacom and AT&T were battling over the renewal. Viacom was accusing AT&T of using its new market-leader position to try and favor its own content in an effort to stifle competition.
A Viacom news release on its Keep Viacom website reads as follows.
“We are pleased to announced a renewed Viacom-AT&T contract that includes continued carriage of Viacom services across multiple AT&T-DirecTV platforms and products. The deal brings AT&T customers more choice and improved value for Viacom content. Thank you for your support.”
This new Viacom news isn’t just good for VIA stock, but also DirecTV customers. It means they will continue of have access to some major channels. This includes Nickelodeon, BET, MTV, Comedy Central and others.
While the recent Viacom news does bring an end to the feud, it wasn’t without some troubles. The expiration date for the previous deal was March 22. A deal wasn’t reached by then, but it only took a few days after for one to come about.
VIA stock is up 4%, VIAB stock is up 4% and AT&T stock is down slightly as of Monday morning.
