are joined by the chairman and ceo of comcast brian roberts, and the ceo of time warner cable, robert marcus is the parent company of msnbc. >> donny, i want to talk about this quickly. we know brian. we get our paychecks from comcast. they sent us our checks every two weeks. obviously, we are not sort of cool and detached from this news. but i got to say the stunning thing about what has happened since comcast has taken over nbc universal there is talk there might have been a mistake and it didn't fit right in ge's portfolio that entertainment business and creative content didn't make sense. these guys are printing money. i mean, they bought out, i guess, ge ahead of time because they had extra cash and they wanted to send a message that they believed in nbc universal. now this move. even if i weren't working here, if i were working over at cnn or fox or somewhere else, i would say it's a pretty stunning story about just how successful comcast is right now. >> i'm sure brian will tell you. i went to college with brian and a story of how his dad basically started as a salesman. everything th

. >> robert marcus said that is apples to oranges and charter stock is not valuable as comcast stock. the reason is that charter was going to have to lever up so much debt that the company really would be barely investment grade. comcast stock is backed up by the subscribers and nbc universal. >> let me go back to washington to barron you heard about the executives and saying how good for consumer and ceo from comcast calling it in no way anticompetitive and is this good for the customers? >> i think it is. he's right. the cable companies, usually unl one in one given market. what we are talking about here is not reduction in the choices, you simply have in some of the markets time warner replaced by comcast. is concern about the mergers like this is not what we call the horizontal competition, maybe just to much leverage of the programs. first of all that cuts both ways, in some respects that leverage can help out the consumers and the reasons that the cable bills are going up the power, the market power in the industry is held by the content owners and they are extracting more and m

brian roberts came back 10 days or so ago called back rob marcus and said let's get it done. the last week the two sides hammered out final details. >> but there were those worries that you mentioned about charter stock this. deal, from comcast, is for all stock. >> rob marcus on the call today said that's apples to oranges. he said charter took stock even with cash not as valuable as comcast stock. the reason is that charter was going to have to lever up so much, take on so much debt that the company really would be barely investment grade perhaps, comcast stock, on the other hand, is now going to be backed up not only by the largest collection of cable operator subscribers but also by nbc universal which they completed acquiring last year. >> let me go back to washington to baron, you heard earlier the executives from the two companies involved talking about hugh howe good this would be for the consumer . ceo ryan roberts from comcast called it in no way anticompetitive. is it good for customers. >> it is and he's right. there is generally only one cable company in a given

. >> robert marcus agreed? >> no reduction in competition, improved customer experiences and we think that this will clear all of the regulatory hurdles and we will get done. >> comcast is also a major player in broadband. the comcast deal brings new focus on the ongoing battle over net neutrality, the right of content providers to have equal access to the internet. net neutrality is inblimbo after a u.s. court of appeals struck down fcc regulations. the court ruled the fcc does have regulatory authority, but it used the wrong legal justification. so now, the fcc can rewrite the rules or congress can act. the concern is that comcast and other broadband providers could give preampcial treatment to their own produced content and that, critics say could drive up the price for consumers. the planned acquisition comes at a critical time in the history of cable television. over all subscriptions and ratings are on the decline. online video on demand services like netflix and hulu are on the rise. a new wave of court

comcast ceo brian roberts and time warner cable ceo robert marcus joined us in the last hour. -- we're not in the same markets, we're not in any of the same zip codes with time warner. there's no overlap, no reduction of competition. we're just able to bring better products to their markets, but what we've said today is that we're prepared to divest up to 3 million customers, which will bring our new company, combined, below 30%. >> all right. joining us now on the "squawk" news line, amy young, vice president at -- securities. can this deal pass musters? >> there's no overlapping regions, so from that perspective there's no competitive issues. >> how about we've been talking about no breakup fee. >> is that crazy, amy? if you're the board of time warner cable, is that the craziest thing you've ever heard. >> it could be. time warner cable, that company has been on the choppi ishoppin for a few months now. shareholders want them to sell. >> this is a free option now, to the extent they would want to walk away, you know, we've seen this movie before in a couple other instances

ultimately brian roberts and robert marcus seem to have more in common than john malone. he has a big stake in charter. >> who was also interested in buying. >> three times they came knocking on the door. hey, we really want to do it. the last time it was like -- they wanted 160. if we come in on this deal of $159, it is going to be just shy of what they wanted to go back to the board with. i think that john malone can still pick up customers. >> they might have to sell some assets. >> comcast might have to sell assets to meet regulator requirements. >> comcast can't have any more than 30% of the cable market so they might have to divest about 3 million customers. we will see how it all turns out. it is about scale, content and pricing. >> the italian prime minister is fighting off a challenge within his own party. yesterday he presented a new economic plan. today he will learn whether matteo renzi will move to replace them. for the latest, let's cross over to hans nichols live in rome. tell us what happens today. is matteo renzi's move. "jaws"ust said that should be the

or is it more a question of the people, the three people i've just shown you which is robert marcus preferingess with brian roberts? >> there was a time when potentially you could have seen a joint buyout for time warner cable but that didn't come to fruition. we'll learn more about the deal and why it didn't happen. >> now, here's what else is on our radar. u.s. treasury secretary jack lew is in china. he made comments on the show. >> cyber security and cyber theft are somewhat different issues and it's important to distinguish them. the issue that we've raised with china is the protection of intellectual property and policies where there's a theft of intellectual property are just unacceptable for a country who wants to sit at the table and makes the rules for the world. china sees itself in the country that should have a voice in making the rules for the next generation. they can't have it both ways. >> you can watch the entire interview tonight. >> france's biggest bank posts a surprise drop in profits. setting aside more than $1 billion. staff will get less compensation. >> if you talk a

marcus malone. for stanley roberts shows us how marcus helped a dying man's wish come true.ory you'll see all kron4. marcus malone not a household name is granting rev. lloyd williams from double rock practice--ba ptist church in san francisco a wish. this is going to be one of the biggest things in my life. i have been diagnosed with stage for cancer and doctors told me i don't have long to live. uc reverend williams which was to be able to have a jam session with marcus the magnificent malone. his daughter reached out to me asking if i could help reverend williams meat market street will now hear that are jamming together. >>: this was not the first time market reforms since the last time we saw him when santana presented him with a set of: gus--congas. this is marcus for farming and sweetwater in mill valley this video courtesy of stomacher mitch stein. he was an invited guest perform with the group crypital marcus jammed for what i've told was about two hours. but this question on a lot of people lined with been going on with him and carlos santana. so all of this being

time warner chairman robert marcus calling carter's move an attempt to pressure the board into acceptingfer. wholesale inventories rose to their slowest pace since july. the commerce department says wholesale business stockpiles climbed by 0.3% in december from november. that mr. expectations. small business sentiment increasing slightly in january. the national federation of independent businesses optimism index which gains members outlooks rising to 94.1 from december. that is the latest from the fox business network giving you the power to prosper. connell: breaking news on the fox business network, three big stories to keep your eye on at this hour, janet yellen's testimony continues on capitol hill and has through the hour but they just took a break. the other thing which we mentioned, the debt ceiling voted on, they moved it up because of the snowstorm to the east coast. the third big thing coming up in the next hour, 20 minutes from now president obama's join news conference with the president of france is set to begin at the white house. dagen: we are following another winter sto

will catch on with our regional santana band member--marcus malone. stanley robertsish come true. the great american novel. so you can happily let life get in the way, while planning for tomorrow. so you can finish the great american novel banking for the life you have investing for the life you want chase. so you can ♪ wita da of lt, th mwone loveou mt ♪ >> (nats of reunion) >> you may remember this reunion with the world renowned on bay area musician carlos santana and unoriginal member of his band. we first brought it to you exclusively on kron 4 and it was soon shared around the world. >> there are new developments in the story of bands and a member marcus malone. stanley roberts shows us how he held a dying man's wish come true. is this story will only see on kron 4. >> i have been diagnosed with stage for cancer. the doctor stated that i do not have that long to live. his wish was to have a chairman session with marcus malone. now, here they are. >> (music) >> this is not the first time that he has performed. maligned this is marcus performing in milk ballot. >

there we go, brian roberts and rob marcus on "squawk box" this morning at 7:00 a.m. eastern.tudio, alex cruz. your reaction to this deal? >> it's a very big deal. $45 billion, stock deal, reminds me frankly of the heyday, 1999/2000 when we were seeing lots of deals of this magnitude and a titan in terms of u.s. cable. >> 18% premium over the company's latest stock price. we could view this as -- do you see this as clearly a friendly deal? >> it looks like a friendly deal. it looks as though both boards will recommend it. critically, it's not hostile. that's the basis from which the deal can proceed. but the premium is very tasty from investors point of view. and i've got no doubt that the two guests you'll have on the show will do a very good job of talking up the potential synergies of putting these two businesses together will generate. >> the federal communications commission rules, as bertha is leading to, it doesn't appear to run foul of those, but nevertheless it's going to get -- regulators will have to look over this fairley intently. >> absolutely, yeah. there will b

i'm making sure our viewers understand reality because i agree with what marcus had to say there's a huge distortion here robert ok let's go to our third and go on third gas and we can. go ahead robert give me your take on what's going on here because this is a very serious event playing out in the in camp right now. the situation is being whipped up by the european union and the united states of america with the aim of destabilizing the ukraine and trying to play some zero sum game where they hope to eliminate russian influence within that country it is it is a political game that's being employed by western powers that are causing a great deal of havoc on the streets of ukraine and pushing the country towards a very very dangerous situation that will not end well there is serious meddling western meddling in that country and it must stop the european leaders the united states of america should list specter the government of yannick over which there's an election next year if the people don't like him they can vote him out because the danger is that they probably won't talk to people and clearly don't like. be

marcus malone stanley roberts roberts shows is how he helped the dying man's wish come true. >> : it'slping our reverence.our friend.>> : i denied us to sit for con cancer doctors told me that i will have long lived. reverend williams which was to have a jam session with marcus malone. here they are jetting to the other jetting t>: mitch done was an invited guest mark is told it was two hours. >> : the questions on what people's minds house marcus doing. >> : things got a little better. a rose to happen with that and cut this thing can a difficult because there's really been no communication of looking for to and what is busy in las vegas has been wrong bay area. marcus malone is making the rounds he hopes carlos makes a promise that is had on the for occasions. >> : the unforgettable for me in no guidance is happening and it happened. it seems that everywhere where that marcus comes in contact with everyone becomes inspired. a kind aquino see him getting back into playing and getting his hands back. it's a great privilege for me. there may be other chances for marcus to perform the ef

brian roberts -- an extraordinary transaction. rob marcus got full value at time warner.cast became a better company by reason. charter has stayed the same. like malone is aggressive. charter went hostile. think christina has a better point. this is an industry that writes itself on collegiality. collegial consolidation . it was hard on the industry to criticize time warner management and that sets him on age. edge.t set them on harshy did not like the truth. time warner has had a hard time with customer satisfaction. malone is known as darth vader of telecom. in the cable industry, that probably did not go over well. >> that may have been the straw that broke the camels back. comcast was willing to do or at a partnershipn with charter. once malone went hostile, that may have been too much for comcast to handle. one thing to go out there and criticize. another to go out and propose entirely new board of directors. >> it is extraordinary to me that just days before comcast made the announcement charter nominated their own slate of time warner cable board members. of course

and, in fact, it was only two weeks ago tomorrow that they had one meeting, rob marcus and brian roberts, about a potential deal in which i am told by sources close to the situation roberts' attitude started to change about pursuing an entire purchase of the company. followed by negotiations that heated up in the middle of last week and ended with a ratio that both sides agreed on this monday and a deal announced this morning. still, it is the question of whether this will get by the federal communications commission that is certainly one both sides have to answer. here's what mr. roberts had to say in an interview we did earlier this morning on "squawk box." >> there's over four, in many cases five video competitors in every market selling all of the content services. the business is transforming every day with technology. it's a competitive business. a balance that needs to be struck between operators and distributors and content companies to bring consumers what they want. and i think this transaction will help speed up the technological innovation really really bring new products we

brian roberts finally decided to do that and for rob marcus, who's been the ceo a very short time, apparently a clear decision. >> the value being offered was very close to $160 a share, and we think the long-term value creation opportunity is even greater than that. for us, a clear decision. >> but before this deal can close and by the way both sides are hoping to close it by the end of the year, though that may be somewhat aggressive it has to pass the muster of antitrust authorities and regulators. the department of justice and perhaps even more importantly, the federal communications commission. after i broke the story a few months ago, that com kavpt was interested in looking at time warner cable, i also reported many times that in the eyes of brian roberts, it was a difficult deal to get done, in part because it would simply be hard. hard to deal with the fcc. hard to have to enter into another consent degree, if that wering to happen, yet roberts apparently got comfortable with the idea of buying the entire company, and comfortable with the idea that it will be pro-competitive. >> we d

cross-talk developments in ukraine i'm joined by my guest marcus papadopoulos in london he's the editor of politics first magazine also in london we have robert oulds he used to director of the bruges group and in washington we crossed to ariel cohen he is a senior fellow in russian and eurasian studies and international energy security at the heritage foundation or a gentleman crosstalk rules in fact that means you can jump in anytime you want and i very much encourage it marcus if i go to you first in london i've been watching the pictures coming out of care for the last day and a half this looks like a armed insurrection this looks like an organized coup against the government in kiev and we have we have to point out here that the government in kiev mr unico which has reached out to the opposition numerous times over the last two weeks but still the violence continues and i want to make it very clear there is violence on both sides right now markets with what is your reaction. can i just say first of all pate.

robert g ingel. you are covering a cyber security hearing today and executives from target and neiman marcus testifying. what are the lawmakers hear and what about the gaps that the executives -- retailers said they waited a couple of days to check the malware before notifying customers? >> we heard from john mully began, the cfo of target. he said it didn't find it out on its own. it was notified by the justice department but tchs a week before they said anything publicly. they heard it about it justice on december 12th and confirmed it on the 15th and notified the public on the 19th. at first you think, why did they wait four days. what he said is it took them time to number one, see what exactly was taken, determine how many customers might be affected and then staff up the telephone answering centers and notify the people in the stores so that once they made this public announcement, people at target would know what to say when people started calling in and asking what happened to their information. secondly, a lot of support today from the industry from members of congress for moving to what's cal

robert kaplan, harvard business school and the author of "what you are really meant to do." investigating possible security breaches at 2 retailers, this is similar to what took place at target and neiman marcusiction from the chinese filmmaker says they will sell 100 million units, the second strong year of strong growth at huawei. last year there was growth of 68%. the push for smartphone users is baidu, who sayt that revenue will reach $100 billion as advertisers spend more to reach mobile phone users. that is the latest from the files of "bloomberg west." crimea. watching >> ian bremmer with the asia group is looking at the entire region. from brussels to moscow and the effect on the ukraine. and of course, the foreign response including the united states. dr. bremmer joins us today. what are you focused on on the cacophony of news, what is your group focused on? >> it is still very much russia versus the west. the ukrainians need a lot of money. you have an eye on that process that is in place, the americans are willing to provide cash but well short of what the ukrainians will need to keep afloat. the russians think they will be part of that process. a lot of folks think this is a good

marcus allen signed with penn state. but of course, signing day is also a big day for the colleges. the maryland terrapins were able to snag some hometown talent. >> i'm dianne roberts in captioning sponsored by cbs this is the "cbs evening news" with scott pelley.