Shares in Dish Network parent EchoStar climbed 7% in early trading Monday in the wake of reports that the satellite TV division is once again discussing a merger with DirecTV.
The companies have long coveted a combination, though a formal proposal was scuttled by the FCC in 2002. A lot has happened in the intervening two decades and the companies are experiencing major stress due to cord-cutting.
If the two were to pull off a merger, it would create the largest pay-TV provider in the U.S., with a combined 19 million subscribers.
EchoStar stock has been weighed down of late by various financial challenges faced by the company, which has been trying to stand up a wireless competitor to AT&T and Verizon. AT&T owns 70% of DirecTV, with private equity firm TPG controlling the rest.
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