DirecTV and Dish are reportedly close to finalizing a merger agreement that could add more than 20 million subscribers

According to multiple reports, DirecTV and Dish are in advanced discussions about a merger that could create the largest U.S. pay-TV provider with more than 20 million subscribers.

The agreement could be announced as early as Monday, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday evening. This also includes Sling TV, Dish's streaming TV brand.

Both satellite TV companies have lost customers who opted for cheaper and easier-to-cancel streaming services.

The proposed deal would give DirecTV parent AT&T and private equity firm TPG the opportunity to dramatically cut costs. For Dish, it would offer Charlie Ergen, co-founder of parent company EchoStar, a lifeline from debt repayment, Bloomberg reported.

The companies have flirted with a merger before and have held discussions several times over the past two decades. In 2001, Ergen attempted to merge the two satellite television networks but was thwarted by regulators.

The bold negotiating tactics of Ergen, a former poker player, have complicated other efforts, including more recent negotiations in 2022.

It's unclear whether federal regulators would see the pay-TV landscape as competitive this time as it once was and block the proposed deal, or whether they would see how bleak the future of satellite TV has become due to the rise of streaming.

According to Bloomberg Intelligence, the pay-TV industry, including cable and satellite, had 104 million subscribers in the U.S. in 2015.

That number has shrunk to fewer than 70 million this year due to cord cutting and the dramatic growth of streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime.

DirecTV also recently suffered a setback when it lost the Sunday Ticket package to YouTube TV.