Paramount Skydance is working with an investment bank as it prepares an offer for CNN’s parent company in a major shakeup.
Paramount Skydance is planning to make a majority cash bid for CNN parent company Warner Bros. Discovery in an effort to consolidate the media giants, according to reporting in The Wall Street Journal on Thursday.
“The bid will be for the entire company, including its cable networks and movie studio,” people familiar with the situation told WSJ.
Skydance is run by David Ellison, son of multi-billionaire Larry Ellison who co-founded Oracle Corporation.
Skydance officially merged with Paramount in an $8 billion deal just weeks ago after CBS agreed to settle a lawsuit with President Donald Trump for $16 million. Trump had claimed that a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris was “unfairly edited” and put him at a disadvantage in the 2024 election. (RELATED: Paramount Pays $16 Million To Settle Trump Lawsuit Over Edited Harris Interview)
Paramount Skydance owns broadcast network CBS, as well as pay TV networks like BET, MTV and Nickelodeon, and streaming service Paramount+. Its film studio is known for movies like The Godfather, Top Gun, and Forrest Gump.
With the exception of a broadcast TV network, WBD has similar assets — a result of its own merger in 2022 between WarnerMedia and Discovery. The company owns networks like CNN and TNT, as well as HBO and streaming service HBO Max. Its Warner Bros. film studio also has a historic track record, and owns the intellectual property to franchises like Harry Potter, DC Comics, and The Lord of the Rings.
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