Paramount officially completed its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery on Tuesday, consolidating two of Hollywood’s most prominent studios into a single media conglomerate named Skydance. The deal places television, news, and cinematic assets under the leadership of David Ellison.
The newly formed Skydance encompasses Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros. Pictures, alongside major broadcasting networks including CBS News and CNN, as well as the HBO and CBS television brands. Ellison has indicated that Paramount+ and HBO Max will eventually be merged into a unified streaming platform.
“Today is a historic day, not just for Skydance but for our entire industry,” Ellison stated, highlighting the significance of the merger. His family maintains close ties to US President Donald Trump.
Trading for Skydance shares commenced on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “SKYD.” As part of the transaction, shareholders of the former Warner Bros. Discovery will receive approximately $31 per share in cash.
The closure of the deal follows a federal court approval in California last week, which resolved a settlement between Paramount and twelve US states that had previously sued to block the merger on antitrust grounds. Paramount had emerged victorious in a bidding contest against Netflix in February, and the Trump administration granted regulatory approval in June without imposing changes to the company’s business model.
Skydance projects annual revenues of nearly $70 billion and aims to achieve more than $6 billion in cost savings within three years. David Ellison will serve as chairman and chief executive officer, while former Mattel CEO Ynon Kreiz will act as co-CEO, overseeing daily operations and the integration of the two entities.
The acquisition is backed by $47 billion in new equity, led by the Ellison family, private equity firm RedBird Capital, and sovereign wealth funds from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi. Billionaire Oracle founder Larry Ellison provided significant funding and loan guarantees, ensuring his family holds the largest equity stake in the new company.
While the merger creates one of the largest media combinations in history, it faced opposition from industry critics concerned about potential job cuts and reduced film production. News organizations also raised alarms regarding the independence of CNN. To address these concerns, the deal includes safeguards such as a dedicated board tasked with protecting CNN’s editorial autonomy.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
Merging Paramount+ and HBO Max into one streaming service is a bold move. Let’s see if they can fix the buffering issues first before we celebrate.
Wait, Paramount bought Warner Bros? I thought Netflix was going to win that bidding war back in February. The media landscape is shifting fast.
A seventy billion dollar empire? This changes everything for Hollywood. I wonder how the CNN editorial independence pledge will actually hold up in practice.