In this May 12, 2014 file photo, "The Tonight Show" host Jimmy Fallon attends the NBC Network 2014 Upfront presentation at the Javits Center in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)
NEW YORK (AP) --
NBCUniversal has agreed to make customized episodes of "The Tonight Show," ''Saturday Night Live" and several other shows for Snapchat under a multiyear deal between the broadcast network and social media app.
NBC says episodes of "The Voice" and "E! News" from E! Entertainment Television, which is owned by NBCUniversal, will be the first of its programs to be shown on the Snapchat Discover platform. Those shows will be followed by original episodes of "Saturday Night Live" and Jimmy Fallon's "Tonight Show."
In return, NBC plans to develop and sell advertising packages that include Snapchat as part of the deal.
This isn't the first deal between New York-based NBC and Venice, California-based Snapchat. The companies currently are partnering on an NBC Rio Olympic channel for Snapchat Discover.
Dish Network satellite dishes are shown at an apartment complex in Palo Alto, Calif., Feb. 23, 2011. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma, File)
DirecTV is calling off its planned acquisition of rival Dish after the offer was rejected by bond holders at that company.
The deal was reliant on Dish bond holders agreeing to trade in the debt they held for debt in the new company, a swap that would have cost them about $1.6 billion, collectively.
The retreat by DirecTV this week may end a years-long effort by the company to acquire both Dish and Sling after it announced the bid in September.
DirecTV was looking to acquire Dish TV and Sling TV from its owner EchoStar in a debt exchange transaction that included a payment of $1, plus the assumption of approximately $9.8 billion in debt. The deal was contingent on several factors, including regulatory approvals and bondholders writing off debt related to Dish.
"While we believed a combination of DirecTV and Dish would have benefited all stakeholders, we have terminated the transaction because the proposed exchange terms were necessary to protect DirecTV's balance sheet and our operational flexibility," DirecTV CEO Bill Morrow said in a statement.
The prospect of a DirecTV-Dish combo has long been rumored, and reported talks resurfaced over the years. And the two almost merged more than two decades ago — but the Federal Communications Commission blocked the deal valued at the time at $18.5 billion deal, citing antitrust concerns.
The pay-for-TV market has shifted significantly since. As more and more consumers tune into online streaming platforms, demand for more traditional satellite entertainment continues to shrink.
DirecTV says that it will continue to invest in next-generation streaming platforms and offer new packaging options while integrating content from live TV alongside direct-to-consumer... Read More
