Deal of the Week

Company A buys Company B. That's the headline. The reality is more complex. Employee benefits must be transferred, 401(K)s rolled over to new plans, pensions are extended. In many cases, employees are terminated. All of these issues -- standard to any takeover -- can doom a deal. That's why Sean Feller, a partner at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, gets hired. He's a member of the firm's executive compensation and employee benefits practice group. Feller tells host Alex Sherman about how executive compensation can act as a motivating factor to sell, although not usually a defining one, and explains the many employee-related concerns that must be dealt with when companies merge.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If the FCC rolls back TV regulations this month, as anticipated, broadcasters may jump at the chance to get bigger. The first deal to be announced may be Sinclair Broadcast Group acquiring Tribune Media. But 21st Century Fox is concerned the deal could give the combination too much leverage in so-called retransmission fee negotiations. It's not just boring jargon, as Bloomberg media reporter Gerry Smith, FCC reporter Todd Shields and host Alex Sherman explain.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's a common love story: PPG, the Pittsburgh-based paint and glass maker, offers to buy rival Akzo Nobel. Akzo Nobel says no, PPG sweetens offer, Akzo Nobel says no, an activist shareholder puts pressure on Akzo Nobel, Akzo Nobel says it'll split the company in two to avoid takeover and may invoke something called a stichting...OK, it's not that common. That's why we've got Bloomberg M&A reporter Ed Hammond to explain it all to host Alex Sherman.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Did Intel yet again overpay for an acquisition with its $15 billion purchase of Mobileye? The takeover aims to give Intel a leg up in the automotive chip industry. Yet some analysts say it's another example of Intel's suspect M&A strategy, Bloomberg's Ian King tells host Alex Sherman. Also, King and Sherman discuss why SoftBank's new $100 billion Vision fund is probably just weeks away from shaking up the technology industry.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Time Inc. has four options: Sell itself, sell some magazines, take a private investment... or do nothing at all. It's decision time for the iconic magazine publisher, whose board is evaluating bids this week. Time's digital advertising growth is promising, but shareholders may be hoping for a sale, says Bloomberg Gadfly columnist Tara Lachapelle and Americas telecommunications and media industry Team Leader Crayton Harrison.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Is Snap Inc. the next Facebook or the next Twitter (or worse)? Bloomberg reporters Sarah Frier and Alex Barinka each take a side, giving listeners the bear and the bull arguments for investing in the technology industry's biggest initial public offering in more than three years. Snap's looking to raise about $3.2 billion, offering 200 million share for $14 to $16 each. But the company's long-term future is the real question. Frier and Barinka debate, moderated by host Alex Sherman.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It would have been among the biggest deals ever. Instead, Kraft Heinz's pursuit of Unilever will become a footnote in history. Kraft Heinz, whose two largest shareholders are 3G Capital and Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, pulled its $143 billion offer after news of its takeover offer leaked. Now, Kraft Heinz will look for new targets, and they're probably going to be big, Bloomberg Gadfly columnist Tara Lachapelle tells Alex Sherman. She gives her predictions for what's next on the wish list and explains why 3G's other deal this week -- Restaurant Brands's $1.8 billion deal for Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen -- reminds her of Kraft Heinz's M&A strategy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

General Motors Co. hasn't turned a profit in Europe since the late 1990s. Still, the business is improving. GM's European division lost only $257 million in 2016 after $813 million a year earlier. That's why carmaker PSA Group, which owns Peugeot and Citroen, is in talks with GM to buy the business. Analysts estimate GM's European unit, known as Opel, could be worth about $2.8 billion. That may not sound like a lot, but the division brought in a whopping $18.7 billion in total revenue last year. Bloomberg reporter Ed Hammond and Executive Editor Jeff McCracken tell Alex Sherman why GM has struggled for so long in Europe and why it wants to finally exit the region.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Here's what we know: Verizon Chief Executive Officer Lowell McAdam asked Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei to discuss acquiring Charter Communications, the $100 billion U.S. cable provider that bought Time Warner Cable last year. Liberty is Charter's largest shareholder. The government's ongoing wireless spectrum auction forbids Verizon from speaking directly to Charter until March, according to people familiar with the matter. We also know Verizon is contemplating more than a dozen purchases -- both large and small -- now that Donald Trump has become U.S. president. Trump-appointed regulators may be more likely to allow telecommunications megadeals than Obama's administrators. Still, Charter may not be Verizon's top takeover choice. Bloomberg wireless reporter Scott Moritz and media reporter Gerry Smith discuss the art of the deal and the art of the possible with host Alex Sherman.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

AppDynamics was set to be the first technology initial public offering in 2017 -- and then it was over. Cisco swooped in and bought the technology "unicorn" for $3.7 billion on the eve of its IPO. That's almost $2 billion more than AppDyanmics's most recent private valuation. Dozens of AppDynamics employees were on a plane heading to New York to ring the bell at the Nasdaq, only to learn that the company had sold itself. Will we see more 11th-hour sales of companies set to IPO? Bloomberg's Alex Barinka speaks with host Alex Sherman.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.