Hope you’re not waiting for a summer slowdown, at least in telecoms. In the last three months, several developments are redefining the mobile landscape and blurring lines between telecoms and entertainment. These include:  

• The AT&T-Time Warner merger was approved by a federal judge over the opposition of the Justice Department in mid-June, and the deal closed a few days later. AT&T’s $85 billion acquisition includes HBO, Cinemax, Turner Entertainment, CNN, Warner Brothers and much more. AT&T acquired DirecTV less than three years ago. (A few weeks after the trial court’s decision and merger closing, the Justice Department appealed, but most observers expect the deal to stand.)
• Shortly after acquiring Time-Warner (now WarnerMedia), AT&T made a deal to buy AppNexus, an ad tech platform that will give advertisers an alternative to Google and Facebook for ad spending and data analytics;
• T-Mobile and Sprint announced plans in late-April to merge the #3 and #4 wireless carriers, respectively, in a $26 billion deal which, if approved, would make the merged company the second largest U.S. wireless operator, behind Verizon;
• 21st Century Fox accepted Disney’s $71.3 billion cash and stock acquisition offer over Comcast’s $65 billion offer in late June. Disney, which owns ABC and ESPN, among other assets, would acquire Fox’s film and production assets (but not Fox Broadcasting, Fox News or Fox Sports), global TV channels such as National Geographic and two major satellite distributors, Sky in Europe and Star in India.