Sign up for our daily briefing
Make your busy days simpler with Axios AM/PM. Catch up on what's new and why it matters in just 5 minutes.
Stay on top of the latest market trends
Subscribe to Axios Markets for the latest market trends and economic insights. Sign up for free.
Sports news worthy of your time
Binge on the stats and stories that drive the sports world with Axios Sports. Sign up for free.
Tech news worthy of your time
Get our smart take on technology from the Valley and D.C. with Axios Login. Sign up for free.
Get the inside stories
Get an insider's guide to the new White House with Axios Sneak Peek. Sign up for free.
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Want a daily digest of the top Denver news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver
Want a daily digest of the top Des Moines news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines
Want a daily digest of the top Twin Cities news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Twin Cities
Want a daily digest of the top Tampa Bay news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa Bay
Want a daily digest of the top Charlotte news?
Get a daily digest of the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Charlotte
John Stankey. Photo: John Lamparski/Getty Images for Advertising Week New York
John Stankey will become CEO of AT&T when current CEO Randall Stephenson retires on July 1st, the company announced Friday at its annual shareholder meeting.
Why it matters: Stankey is currently AT&T's COO, and a bitter shareholder battle last year threatened his shot at the top job.
- AT&T eventually struck a deal with that activist shareholder, hedge fund Elliott Management, and Elliott now says it "supports" Stankey now as the company's next CEO, per CNBC.
In a statement, AT&T says that Stankey's selection "completes the final phase of a succession planning process that AT&T's board began in 2017, which included a thorough evaluation of internal and external candidates."
- The company says that its human resources committee recently engaged in an extensive five-month search process.
The big picture: Stankey is a 30+-year AT&T veteran. He helped lead the company through its successful acquisition of Time Warner, and eventually became the CEO of the company under its new monicker, WarnerMedia. AT&T named former Hulu exec Jason Kilar the CEO of WarnerMedia two weeks ago, foreshadowing a change.
- Stankey had previously run AT&T's entertainment group, and served as the CEO of AT&T Operations and Business Solutions.
Between the lines: Stephenson's succession plan, which the company says has been in place since 2017, was unclear given the pressure from Elliott to bring in a CEO with media experience, not just telecom experience.
- AT&T bought Time Warner in 2018 for $85 billion. Elliott had been critical of AT&T's acquisition of the media company, and some of its other major acquisitions, like DirecTV.
- Stephenson said earlier this year he would remain with the company through at least the end of 2020. In the announcement Friday, the company said he would remain executive chairman of the board until January 2021.