Verizon may be considering a move to purchase a cable company in order to increase their distribution efforts and avail themselves of more spectrum and network resources, according to a couple of sources allegedly close to the company. One of the bigger reasons for such a purchase would be to build out a commercial 5G network more quickly and effectively. The anonymous sources maintain that the company is making no move in that direction at this time and is in no talks with any cable companies regarding a purchase, but CEO Lowell McAdam has been making no secret around employees and associates of the fact that he is open to Verizon purchasing a cable company. Sources allege that McAdam is looking the hardest at Comcast and Charter.
One of the biggest indicators of McAdam’s possible interest in a cable company were his alleged words to personal associates at CES, saying that he wanted to get into the cable field through acquisition. As for indications within the company’s actions, Verizon has been working hard at developing 5G standards that will be compatible with cable standards to allow interlocking connections. They have also been pushing hard into media, with GO90 growing fast, and the acquisition of Yahoo still on the table as a possibility despite the risk of serious liability stemming from the large-scale hacks of Yahoo’s services that have recently come to light.
While a cable company merger or acquisition is certainly not on the table at this time, McAdam has stated that it would make good business sense. Should Verizon pursue this path, they would likely have to give whatever cable company they choose a good measure of autonomy, allowing them to mostly continue business as usual while allowing Verizon to access their media and network resources in order to bolster their own offerings. Verizon’s possible push to become a one-stop telecommunications and media company mirrors the very real push currently being made by AT&T, whose deal with Time Warner is still up in the air at this time, though it is waiting for little more than regulatory approval at this point before it can go through completely. Such a deal could leave Verizon quite disadvantaged, unless they made a similar move.