Spotlight: AT&T's DISH debt request raises questions

When AT&T earlier this year ended a satellite TV resale arrangement with DirecTV, it left DISH Networks in the enviable position of being AT&T's only partner on the service. There also was much speculation that AT&T could even acquire DISH, but now the telco giant has asked DISH to buy back $500 million of DISH debt owned by AT&T. This has raised question about the ongoing relationship between the two companies.

Many industry observers, including FierceTelecom, have wondered all along if telcos and satellite TV companies would remain partners in the long run with the telcos launching more of their own wire-based IPTV services. AT&T denied the debt request had anything to do with the status of the DISH partnership, but we may find out soon how interested AT&T will be in satellite in the future.

For more:
- read this report [1] at The Wall Street Journal

Related articles:
DISH last month was looking to jump-start after a bad quarter DISH report [2]
Dish Network couldn't match DirecTV's Q1 customer numbers Dish Network report [3]