Today, Paramount announced that its CEO, Robert Bakih, has resigned from his position on the board. This comes as reports over the weekend suggested the board wanted him out.
Replacing him will be a committee of senior executives at Paramount who will work together to lead the company. This comes as Paramount is in the middle of talks with Spectrum about renewing its TV deals. Paramount is also in the middle of talks to be sold or merged with other companies.
“To lead and oversee the company moving forward, Paramount Global has established an Office of the CEO, consisting of three senior company executives: George Cheeks, President and CEO of CBS; Chris McCarthy, President and CEO, Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios and Paramount Media Networks; and Brian Robbins, President and CEO of Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon. Cheeks, McCarthy and Robbins will work closely with Naveen Chopra, CFO, and the Board of Directors.” Paramount said in a statement on its website.
Over the last month, news has been flying that Paramount is getting closer to a deal to be sold to or merge with Skydance. This comes as, for months now, Paramount has been in talks with multiple companies for a potential sale or merger. This includes talks with Warner Bros. Discovery, Apollo Global Management, and others. Some of these talks have gone well others like Warner Bros. Discovery have walked away from a possible merger with Paramount. There even have been reports that Sony has been looking at putting in a offer with Apollo.
This all comes as yesterday CNBC reported a deal is close that would see Paramount merge with Skydance but Spectrum Cable TV could be an issue. Paramount has until April 30 to reach a deal with Spectrum to keep its channels on the cable TV network. According to CNBC Spectrum could be a tough deal to reach. This comes as Spectrum was willing to walk away from Disney last year just as football season started.
Apparently, Skydance is watching the talks closely, and they could have a major impact on the merger.
Currently, Paramount Global is controlled by media executive Shari Redstone. Redstone 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 merger seems to need to be for the full Paramount company to include its cable TV networks, which include Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, MTV, and multiple movie theaters.
Talks between Paramount and Skydance have reportedly been happening since November 2023.
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