Here's a decently big heads up to anyone looking to cancel DirecTV and switch to ... well, pretty much anything else. (That includes, of course, any of the number of flavors of streaming video.) Starting Jan. 14, 2019, AT&T no longer will prorate your bill if you cancel one of several services before the end of your billing cycle. The good news is that you'll still keep the service through the end of the billing cycle — you just won't be saving any money.

The new policy affects those canceling service from DirecTV, U-Verse TV, AT&T Phone, AT&T Internet, and Fixed Wireless Internet. Do note that the new policy does not affect AT&T Wireless — your cell phone — or DirecTV Now, the streaming TV arm of things. (The new policy also brings AT&T's in line with some of its competitors.)

Here's the not-so-fine print:

We bill in advance for DIRECTV, U-verse® TV, AT&T Phone, AT&T Internet, and Fixed Wireless Internet accounts per our service agreements. Currently, if you cancel any of these services, we give you prorated credits for the remaining days in your bill period. Starting January 14, 2019, if you disconnect these services before the bill period is over, we won't offer those prorated credits anymore. But, you can still use your services until the last day of your bill period. We're making this change so our video and broadband services follow the same billing policies as our mobility services.

There are some caveats, of course. (And to be fair, AT&T is being clear about all of this Here's what all you need to know:

• This new proration policy affects DirecTV, U-Verse TV, AT&T Phone (landline), AT&T Internet, and Fixed Wireless Internet accounts.
• The new policy takes effect Jan. 14, 2019.
• It does not affect accounts in California, Illinois and New York.
• If you're in Michigan, it doesn't affect U-Verse TV, AT&T Phone or AT&T Internet accounts.
• If you're upgrading or downgrading services or features, you're in the clear.
• If you switch between DirecTV and U-Verse TV, or DSL and AT&T Internet, or landline phone and AT&T Phone, you're good.
• If you change locations but keep your accounts
• If you have DirecTV for Business

Thanks, Daniel, for the heads up.

Updated July 13, 2018: AT&T already has something to say about the DOJ's appeal. Per the carrier: "The Court's decision could hardly have been more thorough, fact-based, and well-reasoned. While the losing party in litigation always has the right to appeal if it wishes, we are surprised that the DOJ has chosen to do so under these circumstances. We are ready to defend the Court's decision at the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals."

Not even a month after AT&T purchased Time Warner for $85 billion, the U.S. Justice Department is now appealing the deal.

A court document was filed on Thursday, July 12, confirming the news. The appeal is being led by District Court Judge Richard Leon.

Per CNBC , Leon noted in his 200-page appeal filing that "the government failed to meet its burden to establish that the deal would significantly decrease competition."

On June 15, AT&T officially completed its purchase of Time Warner following months of debating the acquisition in court. Time Warner owns major brands such as HBO, DC, and Turner, and commenting on the completing of the deal, AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson said —

We're going to bring a fresh approach to how the media and entertainment industry works for consumers, content creators, distributors, and advertisers.

The court's decision to let AT&T and Time Warner go through this agreement was seen as a controversial move by many, so it'll be fascinating to see where the next steps of the appeal process take us.

What do you think about this development?

AT&T has officially purchased Time Warner for $85 billion

Nearly two years after initially proposing its acquisition plans, AT&T announced on June 14, 2018, that it had officially completed the deal to purchase Time Warner for a sum of $85 billion.

AT&T first announced these plans back in October 2016, and soon after, was faced with a tremendous about of backlash from all sectors. The company most recently spent six weeks in court to determine if the acquisition violated any antitrust laws, but Judge Richard Leon told AT&T it could move forward on June 12.

It was expected that AT&T would finalize its purchase of Time Warner on June 20 to give the Justice Department proper time to make an appeal, but either AT&T decided to jump the gun or the Department admitted defeat.

Commenting on the deal, AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson said:

We're going to bring a fresh approach to how the media and entertainment industry works for consumers, content creators, distributors, and advertisers.

Now that AT&T owns Time Warner, this also means it's acquiring the other brands under Time Warner's belt — including Warner Bros., HBO, and Turner. As part of the deal, Time Warner's former CEO and Chairman, Jeff Bewkes, will be transitioning to a Senior Advisor position.

AT&T boasts nearly 1.5 million DirecTV subscribers, with next-gen platform on the way

For the past six weeks, AT&T has been in court over concern of its want to purchase Time Warner for a total of $85 billion. On Tuesday, June 12, Judge Richard Leon of the United States District Court in Washington D.C. officially approved the deal.

Leon says that the acquisition doesn't violate any antitrust laws, and in response to the government asking Leon to put down his own ruling to potentially kill the purchase, Leon noted that the quest was "manifestly unjust."

AT&T was originally sued by the U.S. Justice Department for trying to buy Time Warner, and if it wants to, the Department has the option of making an appeal before AT&T moves to complete the deal six days from now.

Per Makan Delrahim of the Justice Department —

We continue to believe that the pay-TV market will be less competitive and less innovative as a result of the proposed merger between AT&T and Time Warner.

On the flip side, David McAtee of AT&T's general counsel says:

We are pleased that, after conducting a full and fair trial on the merits, the Court has categorically rejected the government's lawsuit to block our merger with Time Warner.

With AT&T and Time Warner joining forces, the two companies claim they'll be able to better compete with the likes of Google, Amazon, Netflix, Facebook, and others. AT&T and Time Warner will offer better-targeted ads to their customers, and as a result of all this, it's expected that prices will be lowered at some point.

AT&T says it'll complete the purchase of Time Warner on June 20, and seeing as how the wireless carrier first announced these plans on October 22 of 2016, some resolution is well overdue.

What do you think about AT&T buying Time Warner? Drop a line in the comments below.

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