AOL Deal: A 'Signature Transaction' For Verizon?

The New York Times columnist James Stewart recently wrote an article on Verizon Communications Inc. VZ acquiring AOL, Inc. AOL in a $4.4 billion deal titled "Verizon Takes to the Battlefield," in which he called this deal a "signature transaction" for Verizon.

Stewart was on CNBC Friday to explain why he thinks so.

Convergence Of Industries

"I think Verizon should be the focus here, and you can't just look at this deal in isolation," Stewart said. "It's one of a series of fairly bold steps that this giant telecom company has taken that is really shaking up a lot of industries.

"I mean, we are seeing convergence between media, entertainment, technology, telecommunications and this is really evidence of that, and this is like a small deal in dollar terms, but symbolically it's really important."

Related Link: What The Verizon-AOL Deal Is Really About

He explained, "First of all, they are willing to go head to head against Google and Facebook in that space. And it comes on the heels of their starting to unbundle the cable deal – and what this all sort of adds up to is, I think, Verizon is really making good on its promise to put consumers first in these businesses.

"And let's face it, despite lip-service to this, these have been industries that did not put the consumer first. They didn't have to."

Connecting Company

Stewart was asked what he sees Verizon turning into. He replied, "If they have their way, they are going to be a multi-platform, multi-content, get what you want, anytime you want it, wherever you want it. I mean, they say they see themselves as a connecting company," he concluded.