AT&T (NYSE:T) May Make Bid for Dish Network (NASDAQ:DISH) Says Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS)

Shares of Dish Network Corp. (NASDAQ:DISH) on the assertion by Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) analyst Jonathan Chaplin AT&T (NYSE:T) may be interested in acquiring the company.

The reasoning behind his speculation is there is a growing demand from consumers to have broadband and video from the same provider.

Not only would it expand the customer base of AT&T, but also lower churn because of the new stickiness.

Chaplin said, “What AT&T believes, I think, is if you bundle Dish and AT&T wireless on a national basis, that would reduce churn for all products and potentially drive penetration.”

This is something AT&T Chief Executive Officer Randall Stephenson has contemplated in the past, as he has said it would make sense, but it was unlikely it would pass regulatory scrutiny.

That may have all changed now that the Federal Communications Commission instituted new regulations governing Internet-service providers.

The only way they'll find out is to make a bid and allow the process to work its way out; something Credit Suisse evidently believes is going to happen.

Dish closed at $23.49, gaining $1.31, or 5.91 percent. AT&T closed at $28.24, up $0.27, or 0.97 percent.