Implications of the AT&T/Time Warner Decision for Vertical Integration and Media Business Models in the age of Digitization

Technological convergence have had a substantial impact on the way content is generated, distributed and consumed. This in turn has prompted substantial business model innovation and a ‘wave of creative destruction’ in the converged telecoms and media sector. Using inter-disciplinary insights from competition policy and business strategy, particularly business model innovation, this article critically interprets the implications of the unconditional clearance of the AT&T/Time Warner merger. Following the emergence of ‘digital, big-data driven’ business models, this articles calls for a continued case by case assessment of vertical integration in the converged telecoms sector.