iWorld
SBC Communications to adopt AT&T name
BANGALORE: US telecom major SBC Communication’s $16 billion purchase of AT&T was cleared by United States Department of Justice (DOJ) yesterday. And soon after, SBC announced its decision to adopt the fabled AT&T brand name as the combined company pursues a global footprint. The new company will unveil a fresh, new logo as well.
“The AT&T name has a proud and storied heritage, as well as unparalleled recognition around the globe among both businesses and consumers,” said SBC Communications chairman & CEO Edward E. Whitacre Jr. “No name is better-suited than AT&T to represent the new company’s passion to deliver innovation, reliability, quality, integrity and unsurpassed customer care. This is the brand that will lead the industry in delivering the next generation of communications and entertainment services.”
The transition to the new brand will be heavily promoted with the largest multimedia advertising and marketing campaign in either company’s history, as well as through other promotional initiatives. At close, the company will also announce the stock market ticker symbol it intends to use.
The famed AT&T brand will be used in a broad array of services offered by the family of companies. The brand transition will begin immediately upon merger close, along with the integration of networks, product and service portfolios, and customer care systems. The new brand will be incorporated into product and service offerings, and will appear on bills and correspondence, as well as on company buildings.
With these traits and long heritage, the AT&T brand will provide a strong platform as the combined company leads the industry’s evolution to a new generation of Internet Protocol (IP)-based services, which can be delivered via wireline or wireless networks to any number of enabled devices such as mobile phones, PCs and hand-held digital devices.
Though there is a huge brand value in AT&T, there are two concerns: first, it is an aged brand, being over 120 years old; secondly, it is known as being just a phone company. It will, thus, be vital to educate the consumers on the wide range of services the company will offer: internet telephony, interactive video, high-speed internet access, cellphone and Wi-Fi services.
SBC provides local and other phone services mostly in the Southwest, Midwest and in California. With the merger, the company aims to become a full-scale provider of communications services such as local calling, long-distance, wireless, Internet access and even television in the US.
SBC was born when the AT&T monopoly was broken up by the federal government in the 80s. AT&T’s dissolution in 1984 gave birth to Southwestern Bell Corp. and six other similar regional companies (the so-called Baby Bells), which concentrated on local phone service.
Southwestern Bell Corp. was renamed to SBC Corp when it acquired a pair of its sibling Baby Bells. This was when the Congress passed a major overhaul of U.S. telecommunications laws in 1996. With the expansion, the company began to offer long distance telephone services. The competition saw AT&T losing its consumer market share significantly. The company was left with its core business of long-distance network services for corporations. The company was left with limited options to survive and the executives preferred a merger.
iWorld
Meta signs multiyear AI deal with News Corp
Agreement worth up to $50 million annually covers WSJ, New York Post and UK titles.
MUMBAI: Meta just bought itself a front-row seat to the newsroom because when AI needs facts, even Zuckerberg is willing to pay the subscription fee. Meta Platforms has signed a multiyear artificial intelligence content licensing agreement with News Corp that could be worth up to $50 million (£39 million) a year, The Wall Street Journal reported on 25 February 2026. The deal, expected to run for at least three years, grants Meta access to News Corp’s US and UK content including The Wall Street Journal and New York Post for training AI models and powering real-time information retrieval in its products.
Australian mastheads such as the Daily Telegraph and Herald Sun are not included. News Corp CEO Robert Thomson revealed the arrangement during a Morgan Stanley technology conference in San Francisco, describing news organisations as a vital “input company” in the AI ecosystem. “We’re essentially an input company,” he said. “The great threat in the age of AI is going to be to what you might call output companies.”
Thomson emphasised the value of reliable journalism as foundational infrastructure for AI systems, noting regular conversations with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg via Whatsapp and ongoing talks with OpenAI’s Sam Altman. He added that News Corp is in “advanced stage” negotiations for additional deals, promising further announcements soon.
The agreement follows News Corp’s 2024 five-year partnership with OpenAI (reportedly worth more than $250 million) and reflects Meta’s broader push to secure content licences. The company has already confirmed deals with People Inc, USA Today, CNN and Fox News, though financial terms remain undisclosed.
Publishers remain divided, some pursue partnerships for revenue, while others litigate. News Corp subsidiaries have sued Perplexity over copyright infringement, The New York Times is suing OpenAI and Microsoft, yet the same NYT struck a separate AI licensing deal with Amazon reportedly worth $20–25 million annually.
Thomson summed up the dual strategy as “woo or sue” seeking commercial agreements where possible, legal action when content is used without permission.
In an AI race where data is oxygen, Meta isn’t just training models, it’s buying the raw material for tomorrow’s answers, one headline at a time.
