In this May 24, 2011 file photo, Kimberly Adams holds a poster outside Harpo Studios before the final taping of "The Oprah Winfrey Show" in Chicago. Harpo Studios and the Oprah Winfrey Network announced Tuesday, March 3, 2015, that Oprah Winfrey will close the studio where she filmed "The Oprah Winfrey Show" for more than 20 years, this December. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty, File)
CHICAGO (AP) --
Oprah Winfrey will close Harpo Studios in Chicago, where she filmed "The Oprah Winfrey Show" for more than 20 years, this December, and will transition production for her cable network to a studio in California.
Harpo Studios and the Oprah Winfrey Network made the announcement Tuesday. OWN recently moved into a new studio in West Hollywood, California, and work currently done at Harpo Studios in Chicago will now be done there.
Winfrey sold the Harpo Studios property in Chicago's West Loop neighborhood to a developer last year for about $32 million. She said in a statement Tuesday that Harpo Studios has been a "blessing" in her life and she's now "looking ahead" to inhabiting her California studio.
The city named the street outside Harpo Studios "Oprah Winfrey Way" in 2011.
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
