buying directv for nearly $50 billion. $95 a share. the stock is well below that right now, but we'll get more on it in just a moment from both a regulation stand point, a competitive standpoint for people who want cable and want broadband, wi-fi, the whole shooting match and much more. and talk about rejection, no, we're not talking about the nba playoffs, but about pfizer. it's upped its bid to as -- astrazeneca to $120 billion only to get the brush off. several analysts say, nah, it doesn't work like that. it isn't dead yet. check shares of both of these stocks, astrazeneca down 11%. when you walk away from that kind of deal, the market doesn't like it. pfizer moving higher by nearly a percent. we need to tell you about general motors. general motors naming a new global communications chief amid the fallout over its recall crisis. last week gm recalled an additional 2.7 million trucks and cars for a whole slew of new reasons. tony cervone rejoins gm, trying to get this house in order. let's look at shares at the moment, and as we pu

are slightly worried that someone might try to buy directv because at&t would get money if directv said yes to another rival suitor. we know that our rival satellite company was interested. there is reason for concern. >> thank you very much. we had ryanair earnings earlier on. the first annual profit drop in five years. cfo,ng us now is ryanair howard miller. do we lay this at the door of greater competition, pressure on yields? summerad a very warm last year and thought of people decided to stay at home rather than travel abroad. we had weaker sterling. 25% of our business is sterling. we had higher fuel costs. those three factors impacted business. it is a weakness we would have seen last year. we see profits growing by 15 or 18%. a good outturn for the coming year. >> easyjet says they are boosting capacity by more than six percent. what is that going to do to prices? >> we have less capacity, although we are a much bigger airline. we will grow by about four percent this year. strongly in the first half. we expect the average fare to be up more than six percent. the winter is the un

>> directv has a few things that directv -- at&t is interested in. they really want to bundle together mobile video with their current wireless product. he do this to some degree, but they have not really figured out yet how to do a quad play which is wireless service in addition to their home broadband, home television, and home phone. buying directv would allow them to have the first real quad play opportunity that we have seen in the united dates. -- united states. they would get significant growth in latin america, and that is where most of the growth comes from these days for directv because u.s. paid tv penetration has basically reached a plateau because it's industry has matured. >> thank you very much. shares of directv are up about .5% -- i .25% -- 5.25%. dr. dre claims he will be the first billionaire in hip-hop history. ? >> this is taking stock on bloomberg. while the technology and the music world is waiting confirmation that apple is really going to purchase beats electronics, it did not stop the bloomberg billionaires team from taking

>> directv has a few things that directv -- at&t is interested in. they really want to bundle together mobile video with their current wireless product. he do this to some degree, but they have not really figured out yet how to do a quad play which is wireless service in addition to their home broadband, home television, and home phone. buying directv would allow them to have the first real quad play opportunity that we have seen in the united dates. -- united states. they would get significant growth in latin america, and that is where most of the growth comes from these days for directv because u.s. paid tv penetration has basically reached a plateau because it's industry has matured. >> thank you very much. shares of directv are up about 5.25%.i .25% -- dr. dre claims he will be the first billionaire in hip-hop history. ♪ >> this is taking stock on bloomberg. while the technology and the music world is waiting confirmation that apple is really going to purchase beats electronics, it did not stop the bloomberg billionaires team from taking a look

at&t and directv. money is cheap. something we predicted. how large will the pushback the from washington? >> the point you just made, that this was predicted 10 years ago i think is really the important one. that is the question of why now? this feels like a deal that 10 years ago might have made sense. today is a real head scratcher. is aven that directv doomed market, what does at&t get out of this purchase beyond steady cash flow? >> that is the right question. i think the answer is steady cash flow. about nineividend is point $5 billion. generating 11 billion and free cash flow. that does not leave much cushion to sustain the dividend. it has to be looking at buying a cash accretive business that can make the dividend more comfortable. 10 years int about the making is the same point that can be said about the verizon wireless joint venture deal. i think that really was the kicking off of the latest wave of merger and acquisition activity across the board, especially in telecom and media markets and i think it is a carry on from that. le

however, if directv were to walk. or if they came in, directv would be to pay $1.4 billion. >> really? >> we'll see where all of that goes. we were talking about the statement out from berkshire hathaway. saying it's a terrific transaction for all involved. we should say berkshire hathaway owns 34.5 million shares. >> a huge stake in directv. i think it was one of the only ones both chose. >> 34.5 million shares. they are very happy campers. we will break down the deal with media and technology and walter piecyk at 7:40 a.m. eastern time. >> a light week ahead for economic data. it's a chance to take a step back and see how the economy is doing and how it's reflected in the markets. for the next two hours, mark zandi, chief economist at moody's analytics. and christian weller, senior fellow at the center for american progress, professor of public policy at umass in boston. mark, just looking at your comments, man, it's like really goldilocks and really consensus. >> is it consensus? >> to say it with a straight face.

directv has a lot of presence in london america. so does america mobile -- presence in latin america. so does america mobile. at&t says they will sell off america mobile shares. they are worried that the regulators will give this the thumbs down. it is why the at&t deal as it stands would have no breakup fee for directv if it does not get through. they are not on the edge of having to pay up front on anything. there are worries that a why role -- rival could swoop in. such as dish network. so far, dish says it is too expensive. >> that is true. their chairman says the valuation looks a little bit frothy. perhaps it is time for alliance. >> it is, day monday for us. &a monday for us. there was talk that it has the option to up that to 100% -- it could buy the rest of the 55% it does not already own in february. could that be sped up? but that come sooner than the eight months in the timetable? there are a lot of hedge funds taking take -- stake in alliance , hoping that it could be streamlined by walgreens. they are trying to use cas

if you own directv, you should, too. stick with cramer. we believe oug the competition tomorrow requires challenging your business inside and out today. at cognizant, we help forward-looking companies run better and run different - to give your customers every reason to keep looking for you. so if you're ready to see opportunities and see them through, we say: let's get to work. because the future belongs to those who challenge the present. carsthey're why we innovate. they're who we protect. they're why we make life less complicated. it's about people. we are volvo of sweden. >>> yes, i am a believer in penney and not just because i shop there and like the fact that the stores look the way they used to. there's still some of that expensive merchandise there. don't worry about it. always a bull market somewhere. i promise to find it for you here on "mad money." see you tomorrow! iginal product. >> it may be the most recognizable brand on the planet -- coca-cola. >> the heritage of this company is equal to none. there is

they can do that with content from directv. the silent company has a head start with making internet channels. -- the satellite company has a head start with making internet channels. what is in it for direct tv? it needs scale right now. it has seen the satellite market, consumers are looking at streaming rtv content -- rtv content via netflix. it needs a bigger partner. at&t can provide that. it would make it the third &a story so far this year. this will be 70 million customers if you mash them together. >> it is all about this trinity of phone, rock band, and video. -- broadband, and video. there are regulatory concerns. >> this is a real worry for the likes of at&t. directv was paid for by dish network at decade ago and it did not go through. too much fear that it would reduce competition. they're trying to woo the regulators already. the chief executive of at&t is saying look, i will give you unprecedented concessions. if they had directv and they have a stake in america mobile, that is where these two companies fight hea

some answered a question why at&t would buy directv when u.s. satellite tv subscriptions have flattened. at&t in frankfurt is flat. there will be some regulatory rule casting over that proposed deal as well. now google's reportedly struck a deal to buy the gaming site twitch for more than $1 billion. this is according to a report in variety. twitch is a privately held video streaming service for gamers. this report suggests the old cash transaction will be announced imminently. twitch was founded with more than 45 million monthly users. shares for google are flat today as well. >>> and siemens may make a deal for the power business while the french government takes a stake in the rail business. he's already in talks with ge over a $17 billion bid for the four arm. they will decide on that in june. the french government has been openly critical of ge's bid. stephane is in paris with more on this. they are changing the rules on the ability to block deals, stephane, so what do we think is going to happen from siemens, is it certain they are going t

we're watching the shares of directv this morning. reports say that at&t is indeed in talks to buy the satellite tv provider for $50 billion or 95 cents a share. that deal could be completed within a few weeks. is the rationale triple play, andrew? is that the whole idea? is it triple play? >> two things. brian roberts, comcast runs our parent company, said you have to have a national footprint. if you want to buy the nfl ticket for real and be able to do it, on the similar side, if you're directv or at&t, you want to have that platform too. you have comcast/time warner cable there. the regehrs are trying to look at that. the question is, do you jam in the at&t/directv deal at the same time? that's what this is all about. >> we are sometimes at the at&t tournament and if randall is there, not there. >> something is going on. >> directv. why now? >> this is a regulatory game. you either get both deals in under the tent. >> they need it to offer triple play. >> directv has been speculated to be either an acquirer or a buyout target. the

at&t is buying directv. at $95 a share the deal values directv at $48.5 billion. cbs news business analyst jell schlesinger is here with more on this. jill, at&t kicked off 2014 with its best first quarter subscriber in five years why are they interested in directv? >> at&t wants content, directv has content. directv also has 20 million customers here in the u.s. and a lot more in latin america, a place where at&t would like a nice foothold. from directv's standpoint, they've been losing business to places like amazon prime and netflix. in fact, if you look at the subscriber growth at netflix it was up over 22% over the last year, compared that with directv, less than 1% growth. >> jeff: so much happening in february, comcast said they were going to buy time warner for $45 billion. what is happening in the business right now? >> you know, we're changing the way we consume our television. people want the tv when they want it and they are willing to cut cord with the cable companies. in april, it was reported that 6.5% of households cancelled their cable services. a

if you're watching us on at&t or directv -- >> even if you're not. >> at&t is buy directv in a deal that is nearly $50 billion. at&t's ceo randall stephenson said this new deal will offer new bundles and deliver content to consumers across multiple screens, mobile devices, tvs, laptops cars and even airports. after announced that comcast will buy time warner. the meantime the parent company of sprint trying to buy t-mobile. all of this consolidation has some industry watchers worried. >> there could be short-term benefits especially if it means that more subscribers get access to a combination of television and internet access. but i think in the long term, even in the medium term, with that consolidation and that reduction of competition, we see fewer things happening and prices mostly going up for consumers and subscribers. >> of course, prices have been going up with or without mergers for some time. regulators are aware of that issue. they've yet to approve that with. and internet access could be provided to areas that currently don't have it. 15 billion more households in rural area

this could put directv in a very different place. more andstruggled even hasn't added users much at all. it has a significant impact on the satellite tv business. there is the outline question of bandwidth at what ownership might be repurposed. if we look a lot of the deals that are anywhere near the wireless sector, we have to understand that there is a coming shortage of bandwidth. ofif there are not a lot businesses, why is at&t bothering to do this? >> that is the real question. failed toephenson has build out at&t. i look on this as a hail mary. there is not a lot of strategic sense. the two companies don't mesh together. cash flow adst directv right now, less than 3 billion a year, and it will not do much to secure the dividends or provide with -- them with the capital to buy new bandwidth. model ofbout the changing the business? at&t seems to wants to move in that direction. they are at least trying. it is an interesting time where these companies are trying to figure out a new world and new ways people consume media. it is re

why directv and not dish? >> directv is growing, dish is not. buying a company with growth is an interesting thing. as a spectrum goes, not all spectrum is created equal. there is talk of heading an end to available bandwidth as early as next year. dish might still look attractive. >> something we will continue to follow. thank you so much for that scoop. we are following phase look as they take steps to open a sales office in trying to work with mobile advertisers. this is according to people with knowledge of the matter saying that his book is in discussions to lease space in important financial center which is located in beijing's central business district. this is one of the last large market that remains untapped, and facebook has been blocked since 2009. so, is this at all surprising to you given the fact that facebook is completely blocked in china, and most people think it is not going to be unblocked in the near future? >> i do not think facebook is going to become accessible in china anytime soon. but this move does not surprise me bec

thehey were saying we want cash flow of directv, directv is more profitable. dividend and also potentially the wireless spectrum we're going to bid for in 2015. partially driven by the financial aspects of directv. they wanted the upside to the latin american pay-tv business directv has. it is a fantastic business. directv has a strong position throughout latin american pay-tv. hud has a history in latin america. that was one of the aspects. >> it is charlie ergen is a factor in that? who wants to deal with charlie ergen? my light -- mike white might be more amenable. >> that is a fair point. it is going to be interesting to see what charlie's next move is. everybody is talking about his interest in t-mobile. not shied away from acknowledging his interests. he is going to be potentially leading the next transaction. >> felt more to come. thank you so much, jon erlichman, our bloomberg west coast correspondent. and to paul sweeney. the at&t-directv combination will be a hot topic facing fcc chairman tom wheeler on capitol hill this morning. he can expect a gril

does directv have -- i guess so many questions come to mind. at&t is interested in dish or directv. is charlie ergen, founder of dish, interested in at&t? >> hei is. this is a dance. two of these three will end up together and the other will be on the outside. >> there is no possibility dish and directv could merge first? >> i do not want to rule anything out. >> purely speculative. the driver seat and they will pick one or the other. partially the question out there is from a regulatory standpoint, what will regulators allow. dish and directv tried to come together before and it was blocked. at&t could have done this years were at 40 and now shares are north of 80. they did a decision to go after t-mobile, regulators blocked it, now they are talking to directv at a heftier price. >> another eel, t-mobile-sprint. we heard from the ceo of ceo,che telekom, parent of he does not think regulators will let this happen. >> someone is negotiating through the media. through the bloombergs and the journals and the ft's. >> i get it. when these tru -- sit down for talks, deutsche telekom got

at&t buys directv for $50 million. even with the surge in his screen, -- music streaming, radio continues to thrive. wilmott is on a mission to ban online gaming. here is a look first at our top headline this morning. to buy directvs for $50 billion. that would give them the nation passes biggest satellite provider 20 million subscribers in the u.s.. a ceo trying to sell -- concerned the deal will lead to job cuts. alibaba might be coming here for is takingt facebook steps to open a sales office in china. the chinese government banned people there from using facebook five years ago. story, at&t is joining the consolidation game as a bid for directv. the change would come as comcast unites with time warner cable. joining us now is the former ceo of nbc universal. to see you this morning. what great timing on the morning after this news. does this make sense to you? complex -- >> you have to look at the technology involved and all the activity in media today. are in at&t and directv and comcast, you have land lines , tel

directv's current market cap would create a u.s. pay tv giant close in size to comcast if it completes its acquisition of time warner cable. directv has around 20 million customers. growth has slowed in recent years. at&t serves around 5.7 million. >>> merck is reportedly considering the sale of a big portfolio of mature drugs that might fetch upwards of $15 billion. earlier this week, reports that merck was pursuing another sale. on wednesday, it was said they were no longer in the running to buy merck's consumer health care business. >>> alibaba is reportedly in talks with its major shareholders about buying back a stake in its fast growing online payment business, alipay. it estimates to handle half of china's online payments. even if a deal is reached, it's not likely to take effect until after alibaba's ipo. reports say the company could now file its ipo paperwork sometime next week. >>> and box, is boxing up its ipo plans for now. the online storage company is delaying its planned offering until at least june, amidst weak dema

they can effectively give you an at&t/directv app that -- >> directv nfl ticket by the way. if directv doesn't kneenegotiate for the nfl sunday ticket now the deal is off. >> now i care. >> now you'll be able to watch everything. >> talk about burying the lead to get berman's attention. >> now i'm in. >> that's the other thing, has to get over regulatory hurdles, right? >> i think once we get through that i really think -- the bundles aspect i think is where customers will win. we'll be able to go into rural areas where you don't have a lot of choice. and they're going to be able to come to you and say, look if you get your high-speed internet from us and your tv from us we'll sell it to you all for 100 bucks. and this was something you couldn't get beforehand. >> they don't really know where this business is going, do they? >> it's a shot in the dark. >> we're all moving towards mobile devices. we're all moving towards this cut the cable. i don't need cable tv in my house anymore. >> don't listen to him, you all need cable tv in your house. >> you need the cable for the int

>>> a huge announcement today from at&t and directv. the boards of both companies finalized a deal to merge the telecom giant a deal that has to be approved by regulators. if finalized it will be worth around $50 billion. at&t will acquire directv in a stock and cash deal, set at $95 a share. would create a company with unique capabilities in mobile, video, broadband services. now, joining me to talk is heritage foundation chief economist, stephen moore. let's get right to what consumers of these companies want to know. how it's going to affect them? >> well, you know, it's interesting, miguel, because a few days ago the rumors of the merger started to surface, so for the last couple of days the internet has just been abuzz with angst by customers of directv saying they're not so sure that they want to be customers now of at&t. you know, there's this kind of angst that at&t's not customer-friendly and so on. so there is this fear among scores of people who are the customers of directv. but, look, i actually think this is a really intere

its purchase of directv. the deal gives at&t a satellite-tv provider to go along with its phone, wireless, and broadband services. are slightlyt lower and directv is flat. number one, pfizer, trading slightly higher after astrazeneca rejected its suppose it final offer of $117 billion. over a deallemate that would create the world's largest drugmaker. -- don't missl astrazeneca's chairman. be sure to tune in for that. that we have been following all morning long in washington. the u.s. justice department will announce the first criminal charges against members of a foreign government for >> phil mattingly joins us. this is a big move by the justice department. >> it really is. it can be traced back into 2012. when it comes to cyber issues, the u.s. and china have tipped the around each other. suggested that it is going on. we are always wary about pointing to china, even though that is what they were erecting their complaints to. the justice department started a cyber unit that combined their national securit

at&t directv, it is different. imagine directv teaming up and now you can get the whole lineup on your phone. there is not a transaction yet, but amazing. >> i got a picture of jay-z on the elevator. >> imagine. this feelat make pretty exciting to me as a consumer. >> james lockhart with me. >> the regulators have made very .lear they want four players >> at&t, verizon, t-mobile -- in thee is washington discussion? >> i think washington will no doubt emerge at some point. i think they will have to look at both of those utilities. >> they are incredibly profitable. >> also, the market is pretty saturated. 90% of americans have some kind package.tv >> nice breeze. you did this about reading the assayrk post about the -- beyonce and jay-z. >> i do not want to go there. just reading. croissant up, chris he joins us. he will be the guest host to weigh in on the market at record highs. chris grisanti. ♪ >> good morning, everyone. bloomberg "surveillance." internationalbusy morning. adam johnson has the top headlines fr

at&t in active talks to buy satellite company directv. the report suggests at&t could pay around $95 a share, about a 20% premium. reports of several issues need to be worked out, particularly if there should be a breakup fee. as far as individual stocks are concerned, at&t up and directv up 8%. >>> we have news coming out of australia. they've announced their 2014-'15 budget with an economic forecast. they're eyeing privatizations of the defense housing authority, the royal mint, the registry and the hearing as well. there are a few more surprises to come if the budget goes through. they're also raising the pension age to 70 by 2035. pension age going up in australia as well. i have a feeling pension ages are going up everywhere around the globe. >> i'm going trend. let's give you a look at how the markets are faring. the european market coming off the board. the pace of growth in germany likely to slow from here on out. you can see we now have the cac current in france, the ftse 100 relatively unchanged on the day. the xetra dax still m

and directv obviously has that market largely. you're going to see all sorts of this kind of vertical integration going on. again i don't think there's a lot of people saying oh my gosh monopolies are developing. not in this industry. you've got so many startups that are doing incredible things. youtube, a lot of people get thaer tv their tv on youtube. >> it's amazing. >> $50 billion is one of the biggest mergers in american history. >> that's huge. stephen moore, thanks so much for breaking it down for us. appreciate it. >>> let's go to southern california where this is the big concern. firefighters are making big leaps, though, in their bat battle against raging fires. four are still spreading in san diego county but cooler temperatures and higher humidity are helping the firefighters. firefighters say they're going to do as much as they can while conditions are still good. >> we have crews still in all areas of this fire that are cleaning up areas where there's hot spots. we had some infrared flyovers that were mapping out as

at it.take a stab why directv and not dish? >> directv is growing, dishes not. with growth isy an interesting thing. -- as apectrum spectrum goes, not all spectrum is created equal. heading an endf to available bandwidth as early as next year. will continue to follow. thank you so much for that scoop. we are following phase look as they take steps to open a sales office in trying to work with mobile advertisers. this is according to people with knowledge of the matter saying that his book is in discussions to lease space in important financial center which is located in beijing's central is this -- business district. this is one of the last large ,arket that remains untapped and facebook has been blocked since 2009. , is this at all surprising to you given the fact that facebook is completely blocked in china, and most people think it is not going to be unblocked in the near future? think facebook is going to become accessible in china anytime soon. but this move does not surprise me because a lot of chinese companies are wanting to become global players. they'r

today's deal hinges on directv renews the nfl sunday ticket. some people may subscribes in our viewership. for football fans like me, the important is pretty evident, but for nonfootball fans here as the skinny directv has the exclusive rights to air every out-of-market sunday game during the season. it's the company's crown jewel and the biggest draw in attracting new customers. now language in the merger agreement between at&t and directv allows for at&t to back out of this deal if directv is not able to secure a renewal of that sunday ticket broadcast right with no breakup fee. rights which expires, by the way, tyler, at the end of the season the so directv has said it expects the deal to be reached at the end of the year. according to rich greenfield, what investor should be on the watch for, who would want to derail such a deal? he says that the question for the rest of the telecom and media world is do you really want at&t, already one of the nation's biggest advertisers, to be able to add the nfl to its advertising arsenal. if directv do

directv still makes piles of money. directv on the other hand is looking for high speed technology to get its content onto mobile and guess who's good at that? correct, at&t. >> both businesses have pretty much reached the saturation point whether it comes to attracting new customers but together the possibility for growth is far greater. it's no doubt that at&t's move was sparked by comcast's move to take over time-warner. sprinltd is talking about getting together with t-mobile and verizon with vodafone, the u.c.'s biggest provider. in other words cable and throms telecoms are changing rapidly and nobody can say where it will end up or where the scoornl is better off or not. a lot depends on what happens with comcast and time-warner. if that clears all the hurried manies it will be likely at&t and directv will get the go-ahead. if not look out for more bids for directv possibly from its bl rival dish network. >> that's where it's headed and that's where it's all coming in. >> wall street thinks this will all be a big

deal unless directv keeps those pro football games. corporations fleeing high tax america, encourage them to stay but senator orrin hatch is here with the encouragement to stay argument. chipotle says no guns in our guacamole please. happening now, microsoft tries to make you really want one of its tablets. and we want our money back for those useless obamacare exchanges. we should shoot this on go broke, will we get a cut for all the free advertising? "varney and company" is about to begin. check the big board as we kick off "varney and company"'s first hour. we are down 26 points, we were down 60. we have home depot, profit disappointing. we use this as a kind of economic indicator. home depot saying that housing slowdown really hurt it, nonetheless home depot is up 2.5%. figure that one out, it isn't known to dollars, i thought this was down. staples expects a decline sales, shoppers are going online going to the competition ensure enough that staples taking a hit. 11% down, big hit. another retailer hurting, dick's sporting goods c

directv $450 to i billion. it is one of the biggest media deals ever. cristina alesci is here to tell us what it means. explain why this makes sense. when this was talked about a few weeks ago, it was a head scratcher. >> all of these major players are trying to get their heads around how to survive in an environment where demand for their basic services has been on a decline. that is voice and pay television. we have seen a consolidation. analysts are saying this doesn't amount to that much innovation for consumers at the end of the day. biggerlayers are getting so they can negotiate better programming costs for their customers at the end of the day. both stocks are down. that is unlike every other deal we have seen this year. a little bit of negativity is around the steel. that can be and to regulatory concerns whether or not it will be approved. at&t is some overlap with universe and directv's product in some markets. have 6 billion subscribers. they could not possibly compete when it came to programming time warneromcast deal. i will create a mega-g

it is directv. they are considering a bid to acquire directv. the talks follow comcast's agreement to purchase time warner cable for $35 million. yesterday was a new record high for the dow. you are looking at a dow that was unable to hold on. it is higher for the third straight day. it was led by internet stocks. cristina alesci has more. been -- i haveas been paying attention to the nasdaq a lot. that will determine the fate of the stocks that are planning to go public. we have seen so much volatility. we were looking at how offerings were pulled. the market is an important indicator for a lot of angst. it had been on fire. were talking about this today. it is very unusual when the buyers and the sellers increase. that is what we have been seeing. >> everything through the prism of them and a. >> there's a lot of activity happening. you will be busy. >> i want to bring in the managing director at morgan stanley. we are looking at a market, new all-time high on the dow, three straight days of gains, and we have seen a little bit of recovery aft

yeah, at&t marching together with directv. we're looking at shares of both of these names, down just marginally. neither really reacted dramatically in the after market session when the news broke yesterday. let's get to retail sales, this could have a much bigger impact. they slowed in april as consumers cut back on purchases on everything from electronics to furniture. retail sales for the month of april rose just one-tenth of 1% last month. kind of like the gdp number we got, up one-tenth of 1%. in just a moment, this man, michael gould, was at the helm of bloomingdale's for 23 years. he knows from retail. we're going to ask him his take on the american consumer and whether he thinks all retail sales stores are created equal, which ones are best positioned. one business that's definitely seeing green today, the coffee company, green mountain. they got a big boost after coca-cola disclosed it is hiking its 10% stake to now 16%. all you have to do is look at this chart, shares jumping 7, nearly 8% or $8.67. it's been a nice p

speculation took off after at&t and directv struck a deal to combine. is suspending its involvement in a cyber security working group with the united states. this comes after the justice department charged five chinese officials with corporate espionage. now to the lead story of the day. tried again when it comes to tablet. the unveiled surface pro 3. >> ladies and gentlemen, this is the tablet that can replace your tablet -- surface pro 3. - weith other b- thought there would be a surface mini, but instead, a group. it will cost $799 and hits stores tomorrow. microsoft faces an uphill battle with its tablet. leading with more than 32%. cory johnson is at microsoft surface event in downtown manhattan. this is microsoft's last chance charm.rd time's the what this is about. they are trying to nurture these struggling devices. is rightt attempt here. it is a little bit smaller and lighter. cool and stylish pen or whatever. the most interesting thing is the way this device is being positioned. this isn't just a tablet. rather it is a productivity device to

speculation took off after at&t and directv struck a deal to combine. and china is suspending its involvement in a cyber security working group with the united states. this comes after the justice department charged five chinese officials with corporate espionage. now to the lead story of the day. microsoft tried again when it comes to tablet. the unveiled surface pro 3. >> ladies and gentlemen, this is the tablet that can replace your tablet -- surface pro 3. >> we thought there would be a surface mini, but instead, a group. it will cost $799 and hits stores tomorrow. microsoft faces an uphill battle with its tablet. apple is leading with more than 32%. cory johnson is at microsoft surface event in downtown manhattan. this is microsoft's last chance and third time's the charm. >> tlc is what this is about. they are trying to nurture these struggling devices. the latest attempt is right here. it is a little bit smaller and lighter. it has a cool and stylish pen or whatever. the most interesting thing is the way this device is being positioned. this isn'

directv has until the end of 2014 to renew, and it's a big moneymaker. sunday ticket costs about $3 per year and it is to million subscribers can watch any game they want. and at&t directv deal still has to clear federal approval. >>> one commuter got quite a surprise driving to work this morning when a stray kitten darted across the inner straight and crawled into the wheel well of her car. erika nolan says she was in heavy traffic on was down 580 between high street in fruitvale when she saw the kitten. the driver says she saw the kitten crawl into one of the wheel wells of her car. the kid and when come out, so ... >> he was scared, was shaking and eyes were so sad. >> eventually someone from the freeway service control use the tow truck to elevate the back of the car, crawled underneath and retrieve the kitten. another commuter stuck in the same traffic saw the ordeal and took the kitten home. >>> today started a new phase in the bart to san jose extension one that will impact traffic over the coming days. the new project is an excavation project tha

now those at at&t are set to buy leading satellite broadcaster directv. at&t executives agreed to purchase directv shares for more than $48 billion in cash and stock. and in the debt it will take on they'll be spending over $67 billion. the people at at&t focused on communications, including mobile phone and internet services. they'll gain more than 20 million subscribers through directv's satellite program. executives say the deal will allow them to provide a wider range of services to their customers. but some analysts have questioned why they would buy directv at a time when satellite tv subscriptions have flattened out. >>> senior officials from 12 countries are trying to work through their differences on free trade talks under the trans-pacific partnership. the japanese minister in charge of the negotiations is pushing for an early conclusion of a deal. ministers and other senior officials are meeting in singapore for two days. they're discussing, among other issues, elimination of tariffs on farm products, as well as competition between state-run en

at&t is going after directv. stay "in the loop." ♪ >> billionaire casino mac net sheldon adelson is one of the men in the world and puts his money where his political will is. he is one of the most powerful political republican donors putting $100 million into the presidential election back in 2012. with me this morning his fellow republican donor ed connor who worked alongside mitt romney and is the author of the bustling took," unintended consequences about the u.s. economy. i'm also joined by another friend of matt romney the chief policy advisor to him and recently, sheldon adelson held a primary at the venetian in las vegas with four potential candidates vying for his money. thee going to be determinant as to who gets into the white house on the republican side? betty. morning, i don't know that he will be the determinant but it's pretty clear that he is interested in picking a winner and that's what this is about. i clearly think he will play in the 2015 election. the degree of magnitude may be up for deb

that's what makes this deal important to directv. as more consumers seek bundled services to watch tv and use internet to stream video, this gives its subscribers to access to the faster, broadband infrastructure, also a reason why competitor dish network is the third company to watch. dish will now have to find a way to compete with that if this deal goes through, tyler. >> morgan, thank you ver. >>> megan, both ceos over in london today getting grilled on this proposed deal. >> really getting grilled. theres a lot of concern over where the proposed deal would preserve british science and jobs. pascal sorio saying in an interview you would have to consider any offer, but the concern of the company is the merge ser would be distracting to their r&d. >> when you implement a merger of this size, you disrupt people's lives. you create anxiety in employees' minds, you distract them from the day-to-day work. some of our projects are so critical and need to move so convictly to bring them to patients, but also to create value for our share

and the government will have to review this deal between at&t and directv. but in cases like this, the companies don't go forward unless they believe they're going to get it through the government regulators. i was able to take a look at the portion of the internal presentation for shareholders in this deal. i was able to get my hands on it this morning. it make clear they believe it will pass muster. let me read you this quote. it says the transaction will create content distribution leader across mobile, video and broad band. you can get your att mobile service, our television subscription and internet from the same company. at&t is thinking about that in the same way that comcast is because everything is merging into an internet pipeline. we're going to get all of our content, a phone call or a video program like this via our internet connection and at&t is trying to look down that road and be prepared. >> the consolidation could be a good thing for customers but is there a downside to this potential merger? >> when you a case like this you never expect p

if you're watching at&t or directv. at&t is buying directv is in a deal worth $50 billion. it will make it the second largest provider in the country behind comcast, a merged company will, quote, offer new bundles and deliver contact to consumers across multiple screens, devices, laptops, cars even airplanes. not everyone is as excited. remember, this comes just months after comcast announced time warner cable for $45 billion. but if regulators sign off it gives comcast the top provider with $30 million. meantime, the top company sprint is trying to buy emobile. >> they should be very aware when they get this type of merger, not only does it about the current plans and offerings but it means new for the language to come from. >> relaters are aware of this and they have yet to have the language in this deal. . >> i just want to be able to watch my shows, that's all. the way we catch tv in five years can be very different than the way we watch it today. >> i'm not going to watch it necessarily in the middle of the night, i'm going to have different hours. >> are you leaving?

directv will still be based in southern california. the move will allow at&t to push its tv describers to directv, freeing up bandwidth. the processes exhibited to take less than a year. the sale could mean fewer options and less competition could mean higher prices. >>> california senator dianne feinstein is coming to hillary rodham clinton's defense as republicans raise questions about her age and health. feinstein told cnn clinton is in the prime of her political life just as george w. bush's former chief of staff, karl rove, raised questions about clinton's age. she would be 69 when she takes office and 77 at the end of a potential second term. this week, rove brought up club continue's fall and con suggestion while she was secretary of state. >> i'm not questioning her health. i'm questioning whether or not this is a done deal she is running and she would not be human if she did not take this into consideration. >> she has the energy, articulate, the background, the smarts, all of the elements of a good leader. plus the fact -- an

directv will still be based in southern california. the move will allow at&t to push its tv describers to directv, freeing up bandwidth. the processes exhibited to take less than a year. the sale could mean fewer options and less competition could mean higher prices. >>> california senator dianne feinstein is coming to hillary rodham clinton's defense as republicans raise questions about her age and health. feinstein told cnn clinton is in the prime of her political life just as george w. bush's former chief of staff, karl rove, raised questions about clinton's age. she would be 69 when she takes office and 77 at the end of a potential second term. this week, rove brought up club continue's fall and con suggestion while she was secretary of state. >> i'm not questioning her health. i'm questioning whether or not this is a done deal she is running and she would not be human if she did not take this into consideration. >> she has the energy, articulate, the background, the smarts, all of the elements of a good leader. plus the fact -- an

directv is something different than that. there's promises that they'll keep their prices for three years. >> what does that mean for other monopolies? does that foster competition? >> this is an interesting phenomenon. there is some new technologies in the realm of dsl which actually promises to increase the speeds, ten times or maybe even 100 times, can, both of those may be bringing almost fiber-quality speeds into american homes in the next few years, providing alternative to those traditional cable companies. >> more details sure to come in the next 24 hours after our bill wyman arts and culture contributor, thanks to see you bill. >> thank you thomas. >> tens of thousands of residents are prepared to return home after raging wildfires drove them out. burned through 20,000 acres and several homes. as lisa bernard reports, crews are already preparing for the next assignment. >> cal fire eric and his crew doesn't stop working just because the fires are out. >> get to the heat source and make sure that's fully extinguished.

at&t buying directv for 50 bill, spring eyeing t-mobile in a deal that could snatch 30 million smackers. why go to big and why now? is there a big worry we're missing now? more on that in a moment. first to -- ashley? >> you know, it's an arms race going on right now in the telecom market place and the fight is on to have the clout, the money, the assets to be a major player, at least at&t hopes they are. consumers argue their cable bill is already pretty hefty right now about on the street we got mixed reaction on the news that at&t wants to gobble up directv. >> absolutely. when you have a monopoly and maybe one or or two large carriers supplying to the little guys, the little guys always lose. it's not fair. help, help. >> definitely good for shareholders. see if it's good for consumers. >> i think prices will go down. it's just another competitor cable. it's going to be alternative way to get programs. >> there was some mixed reacts there. good, bad, middle. in the short term the at&t direct disteal with not impact customers. on the upside. customers of both companies will likely se

and this deal can fall apart if directv doesn't renegotiate that deal. but they are obviously confident they will. >> what happens to first of all customers of either of those companies. and what effect might it have on customers? >> they are pledging to keep tv as it is on a stand alone basis for at least three years. for the rest of us they are talking about bundling in district tv with at&t wireless subscriptions over the internet within 18 months to two years. and that's known as delivering content over the top. >> bypassing some sort of box. >> sure. basically over the internet. >> the internet. >> yeah, totally. and in they do that, that would be a big win for consumers because people have been sort of that. >> right. we have to remember that comcast and time-warner, if that deal goes through, comcast is massive generator. >> that's absolutely right. >> so could that have prompted this type of discussion? >> there's no doubt the time-warner comcast deal triggered this transaction and dynamics are at play. obviously comcast wants more scale in its n

and this deal can fall apart if directv doesn't renegotiate that deal. but they are obviously confident they will. >> what happens to first of all customers of either of those companies. and what effect might it have on the rest of us who might not be customers? >> they are pledging to keep tv as it is on a stand alone basis for at least three years. for the rest of us they are talking about bundling in district tv with at&t wireless subscriptions over the internet within 18 months to two years. and that's known as delivering content over the top. >> bypassing some sort of box. >> sure. basically over the internet. >> the internet. >> yeah, totally. and in they do that, that would be a big win for consumers because people have been sort of crying out for the ability to do that. >> right. we have to remember that comcast and time-warner, if that deal goes through, comcast is massive generator. >> that's absolutely right. >> so could that have prompted this type of discussion? >> there's no doubt the time-warner comcast deal triggered this transaction and

directv's current market cap is what it is. directv is the second biggest paid tv operator with 20 million customers. at&t is a land line based business with 6 million customers. this has been talking about this for five years. >> for a long time t. would create a tv giant close to the size of comcast with time warner. they'll have close to 30 million subscribe subscribers. 30 million is a key number. >> yes. >> at&t and directv are not commenting on the story. check out the shares of both companies right now. i can remember at least two or three years ago where you didn't know -- royce randall, is this going to be directv, what's happening? >> to me, this is about a larger issue and it goes directly to the comcast/time warner deal. there's two things. one is if they reach a deal or at least anonsnounce a deal anye soon. this would push it over -- this would clearly push it over the line, the comcast/time warner deal. i would argue the story itself suggests to regulators the world is changing. it points at a bigger issue which

are you expecting a big impact from the directv/at&t merger? >> i think randall steven son does a great job anticipating where markets are going. secondly, the future of an economy of say country is based on infrastructure. it used to be roads and highways. today it is broadband. the chairman of the fcc tom wheeler, we said this week, you have to create an environment that encourages people to invest in the new infrastructure. case in point, israel. they are building out the first digital nation. end-to-end structure. a lot of it cisco. it was inclusion of. smart cities if you will. so the infrastructure of the last 15 years which, maria, you and i watched occur, which create a lot of jobs, can be the infrastructure which is the economic engine for this next decade as well and address the issues that you and your colleagues talked about earlier on the earlier show. >> let me move to the nsa. people are unsure what's happening with regard to the government spying on them. there's a new book out basically suggesting that cisco is helping the nsa

directv has about 20 million customers. at&t serves nearly 6 million. nbc is owned by comcast. >>> still to come at 5:00, they set sail on the bay to broaden horiz horizons. >> some view it as the most important to do in their life. >> the bay area kids who benefit from a very special program and the secret to its success. >> here is the deal. >>> you can't let potentially radioactive material go out to the public. it is not right. >> we investigate the cleanup. now two whistleblowers reveal what they witness on the job. >> it is like russian roulette. >> monday at 11:00 on nbc bay area news. we investigate. >>> anyone who runs a nonprofit will tell you an experienced volunteer is an incredibly valuable asset so that must mean one berkeley nonprofit is about as wealthy as they come. garvin thomas shows us how it helps the kids and the volunteers in tonight's "bay area proud". >> reporter: even sitting high and dry up on shore there is a lot a kid can learn about a boat. >> where is the mast? >> reporter: put that kid in the boat and the boat in the wate