AT&T Inc plans to invest $21 billion to $22 billion in the recently acquired Time Warner Inc. and will also rebrand Time Warner will be renamed WarnerMedia.
"We're not going to be penny-wise and pound-foolish here," AT&T Chief Executive Randall Stephenson said on Friday in an interview on CNBCy. "We intend to invest."
The No. 2 U.S. wireless carrier closed its $85 billion acquisition of Time Warner on Thursday and now faces the task of integrating a media company into its operations as it seeks to rival Netflix, Amazon.com and other technology companies providing entertainment directly to customers.
Time Warner will be renamed WarnerMedia, according to a memo sent to employees by John Stankey, who will serve as CEO of WarnerMedia.
Stephenson said on Friday AT&T intends to preserve Time Warner's creative culture, albeit under a new name.
AT&T's spending plans include investing more in HBO, the premium TV channel with the hit show "Game of Thrones," and expanding HBO's direct-to-consumer platform, Stephenson said.