Over the last few months, news has been flying that Paramount is getting closer to a deal to be sold to or merge with Skydance. Now after Skydance Media reportedly made the deal even stronger, a special committee of Paramount Global’s board members has approved a merger with Skydance but the majority owner has not signed off on the deal. CNBC reports that the deal could be officially announced in the coming days.
Details are still thin, but at last report with this deal, the Redstone family will get $2 billion, and Class B shareholders will get $3 billion to complete the deal, according to CNBC.
Last April CNBC reported a deal is close that would see Paramount merge with Skydance, but Spectrum Cable TV could be an issue. Now Spectrum and Paramount have reached a deal to keep Paramount networks on Spectrum Cable TV and add some of its streaming services.
In April, Variety reported that Paramount Global’s majority owner, Shari Redstone, turned down a cash offer from Apollo Global Management for $27 billion.
Exact details of the offer have not been disclosed, but it is reported that the Redstone family prefers this Skydance deal over other offers.
Paramount Global is controlled by media executive Shari Redstone who also controls National Amusements, which owns 77% of Paramount’s voting shares. Reportedly, the Redstone family is also looking to sell their 77% ownership of Paramount. With that ownership, the Redstone family needs to be on board with any deal, and it has been reported that they are more interested in a deal like this than other deals, like the offer from Appollo Global Management to buy just the studios.
Any sale or merger would include the entire Paramount company from its cable TV networks, like Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, and MTV, to multiple movie theaters.
Talks between Paramount and Skydance have reportedly been happening since November 2023.
The entertainment industry faces difficult times with cable TV viewership declining and most streamers struggling to achieve profitability. Paramount’s streaming service, Paramount+, is among the companies fighting to stay afloat.
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