Ownership

The tug of war over Hulu is over. Disney agreed to pay Comcast an additional $439 million for full control of the streaming service, ending a year and a half dispute over the amount. Disney had argued that it owed Comcast nothing beyond the $8.6 billion it already paid for Comcast’s 33 percent stake — and Comcast countered that Disney owed another $5 billion. Eventually, a third-party appraiser was brought in. The deal is expected to close by July 24. Robert A.

Midco and Savage Communications Inc. have signed an asset purchase agreement under which Midco will gain subscribers and addresses-passed in Minnesota. SCI was founded in 1984 and serves almost 12,000 customers in central, eastern, and northeastern Minnesota. The company will pass almost 28,000 addresses by the end of 2025. The Midco acquisition of SDI is scheduled to close on October 1 and is subject to customary closing conditions including receipt of regulatory approvals. No financial details were included in the press release. 

For almost a year, Elon Musk marshaled the full force of X, his $45 billion social media platform, to boost Donald Trump’s political fortunes and second presidency. As he two men publicly fought in a flurry of furious online posts, Musk revealed X to be a double-edged sword. Musk spent hours firing off mocking memes, curt put-downs and explosive allegations to his 220 million followers, just as he did during Trump’s candidacy and as a member of his administration.

Vodafone and Three have completed their $20.28 billion (£15 billion) merger, leaving the largest mobile operator in the UK with approximately 27 million users. Known as VodafoneThree, the new company will be led by CEO Max Taylor, who currently leads Vodafone UK.

Danville Telecom announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to become a wholly owned subsidiary of ImOn Communications, a rapidly growing broadband provider based in Cedar Rapids (IA). The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals. The acquisition of Danville Telecom will enable ImOn to build upon Danville’s existing fiber assets and more rapidly expand next-generation services to both homes and businesses in Burlington, Fort Madison, and Keokuk. The transaction is expected to close in 2025.

EchoStar is skipping another interest payment as it awaits the conclusion of a review by the Federal Communications Commission.The Englewood (CO) owner of Dish TV and Boost Mobile said it wouldn’t make a $183 million cash interest payment related to its Dish DBS company. The missed payment comes after the company said it elected not to make a $326 million interest payment related to its spectrum business. EchoStar said it isn’t making these payments because of uncertainty surrounding an FCC review.

Business-only fiber network Everstream has agreed to sell “substantially all of its operations” to an affiliate of Bluebird Fiber, a regional business-focused connectivity provider.

Although much of the recent focus regarding the press being under siege has been on President Trump’s Federal Communications Commission, FCC Commissioner Anna M. Gomez cited “an administration-wide effort” involving multiple agencies intended “to chill speech” and stifle dissenting voices. With the FCC under Trump’s handpicked Chairman, Brendan Carr, Commissioner Gomez has few avenues to formally push back against the Republican majority.

The number of cooperatives (co-ops) bridging the broadband divide continues to grow. More than 240 of the National Rural Telecommunications Cooperative's (NRTC) electric members have deployed broadband for their communities, while leveraging these technologies for a smarter grid. Findings from NRTC and NRECA's report include:

South Africa has proposed new legislation to meet Elon Musk’s conditions for offering his Starlink satellite internet service in his birth country after the billionaire refused to comply with Black empowerment laws he called “openly racist”.