AT&T appears set to offload most of its media assets, much to the chagrin of industry watchers AT&T is rethinking its Time Warner (now WarnerMedia) strategy just three years after shelling out $85bn for the business – by seeking a merger between its assets, including HBO Max, with Discovery to form a new streaming giant. Currently languishing a distant third behind titans Netflix and Disney, AT&T is betting big on scale to propel it to success, leaving other contenders such as Amazon, Apple and ViacomCBS in its dust. Why the sudden shift in strategy? The home entertainment business is in the throes of frenetic change, with media firms piling into streaming in a desperate bid to emulate the rampant success of Netflix.