AT&T Plans To Buy OTT Partner Quickplay Media From Private Equity Firm

AT&T plans to buy over-the-top video partner Quickplay Media from Madison Dearborn Partners, a private equity firm, AT&T said Monday. Quickplay's platform already supports AT&T's U-verse TV Everywhere product and will support DirecTV streaming services to be introduced later this year, said an AT&T announcement. It said the new plans will allow viewers to stream DirecTV content on virtually any device. John Stankey, CEO-AT&T Entertainment Group, said: “Quickplay's multitenant IP distribution infrastructure, combined with AT&T's leading scale in IP connected end points, will allow us to host and distribute all forms of video traffic." AT&T plans to retain Quickplay's 350-plus employees and contractors. The deal is subject to antitrust review in the U.S. and Canada, said the release. An AT&T spokesman told us the deal doesn't need FCC approval. AT&T and Quickplay expect the deal to close in mid-2016. "We don’t have concerns about AT&T streaming video," said Free Press Policy Director Matt Wood. "We just have concerns when it uses data caps, data cap exemptions, and pure and simple tying arrangements to limit customers’ ability and incentives to choose other online video sources."