WASHINGTON, July 23 (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Communications Commission voted on Thursday to approve a proposed $48.5 billion merger of AT&T Inc and DirecTV , according to people familiar with the votes.

At least three of the five FCC commissioners have voted in favor of the deal, according to the sources, who spoke anonymously because the votes have not yet been made public.

(Reporting by Alina Selyukh; Editing by Peter Cooney)