In this March 20, 2015 file photo, film director Roman Polanski gestures during a debate at the Paris Book Fair in Paris. (AP Photo/Remy de la Mauviniere, File)
PARIS (AP) --
Filmmaker Roman Polanski will preside over this year's Cesars Awards ceremony, the French equivalent of the Oscars.
The Academy of Arts and Techniques of cinema said Wednesday the 83-year-old Polanski is expected to deliver the opening and closing speeches during the Feb. 24 ceremony in Paris.
Polanski, who lives in France, won eight Cesars over the course of his career, including for best director in 2014 for his film Venus in Furs.
Alain Terzian, the president of the academy, said Polanski is an "insatiable esthete reinventing his art and works over the years."
Polanski is wanted in the U.S. in a case involving sex with a minor that has been hanging over him for almost 40 years. He won the best-director Academy Award for "The Pianist" in 2003.
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
