AT&T says DirecTV deal will reduce programming costs by 20%

AT&T (NYSE: T) has told federal regulators that its proposed acquisition of DirecTV could give it more muscle to reduce programming costs by 20 percent. Citing 8-K documents filed with the Securities Exchange Commission, FierceCable reports that AT&T will achieve $1.6 billion in "synergies" over the first three years by combining forces with DirecTV (NASDAQ: DTV), with most of that yield coming from better negotiating terms with content providers. Read more