Cable Titans Comcast, Time Warner to Merge

Comcast is confirming plans to snap up Time Warner Cable in a deal that would merge America's two biggest cable operators into a behemoth with more than 33 million subscribers, reports the AP. The all-stock, $45.2 billion deal values TWC at around $159 a share, far above the $133 offered by Charter Communications in its own pursuit of the company, sources tell CNBC. Both companies' boards have given a greenlight; the deal could close before the end of the year.

But the deal—which comes four years after Comcast acquired NBC Universal in another mammoth media deal—will doubtless attract close attention from anti-trust regulators, the New York Times notes. To help get over regulatory barriers, Comcast has agreed to divest around 3 million subscribers to keep its ownership of the pay TV market below 30%, sources tell the Wall Street Journal. (More Comcast stories.)