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	<title>Paramount &#8211; USA NEWS LIVE</title>
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	<title>Paramount &#8211; USA NEWS LIVE</title>
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		<title>TV series “JonBenét Ramsey” with Melissa McCarthy and Clive Owen on Paramount+ – The Mercury News</title>
		<link>https://bloggingthree.soflytech.com/2024/09/tv-series-jonbenet-ramsey-with-melissa-mccarthy-and-clive-owen-on-paramount-the-mercury-news/</link>
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		<dc:creator><![CDATA[enzo2go]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Wed, 11 Sep 2024 04:06:08 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Entertainment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Clive]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[JonBenét]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[McCarthy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Melissa]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mercury]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Owen]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Paramount]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ramsey]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[series]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://bloggingthree.soflytech.com/?p=14424</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Paramount+ will produce a brand new streaming TV series based on the unsolved murder of 6-year-old JonBenét Ramsey from Boulder, Colorado – but it&#8217;s going to not be filmed in Colorado. The miniseries, produced to mark the thirtieth anniversary of her murder, stars Melissa McCarthy as JonBenét&#39;s mother Patsy and Clive Owen as her father [&#8230;]]]></description>
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<p>Paramount+ will produce a brand new streaming TV series based on the unsolved murder of 6-year-old JonBenét Ramsey from Boulder, Colorado – but it&#8217;s going to not be filmed in Colorado.</p>
<p>The miniseries, produced to mark the thirtieth anniversary of her murder, stars Melissa McCarthy as JonBenét&#39;s mother Patsy and Clive Owen as her father John. They were immediate suspects within the brutal murder of the kid beauty queen on December 25, 1996, when she <a href="https://www.denverpost.com/tag/jonbenet-ramsey/">found dead within the basement</a> of her house in Boulder.</p>
<p>A lengthy ransom note and the still-unsolved nature of the case proceed to fascinate the entertainment industry. The crime has inspired documentary and fiction series akin to 2016&#39;s &#8220;Getting Away with Murder&#8221; and Netflix&#39;s 2017 experiment &#8220;Casting JonBenét,&#8221; amongst many others before it. The latest series enlists local Boulder actors to &#8220;provide multiple perspectives on her 1996 murder as they vie to play roles in a dramatization of the case,&#8221; Netflix wrote.</p>
<p>The Paramount+ series will take the trail of dramatization.</p>
<p>&#8220;(The series) follows the Ramsey family before and after the tragedy as they grieve the painful loss of a child while facing intense public scrutiny in a media frenzy that has caused the case to captivate an entire nation,&#8221; it says. <a href="https://www.paramountpressexpress.com/paramount-plus/releases/?view=110237-paramount-orders-new-original-limited-series-jonbent-ramsey-wt-starring-academy-award-nominees-melissa-mccarthy-and-clive-owen">a press release from Paramount+</a>.</p>
<p>&#8220;At the heart of the series is the story of Patsy and John Ramsey &#8211; an exploration of the unbreakable partnership of these two complex people &#8211; as husband and wife, as mother and father &#8211; who committed themselves and their children to building the story of a perfect, privileged life, only to see it shattered on a Christmas night in 1996.&#8221;</p>
<p>The show is produced by 101 Studios and MTV Entertainment Studios; production will begin soon in Calgary, Canada, in keeping with the studio.</p>
<p>&#8220;JonBenét Ramsey continues to be one of the country&#39;s most fascinating unsolved murders,&#8221; said Jeff Grossman, executive vp of programming at Paramount+. &#8220;The incredible talent of Melissa McCarthy, Clive Owen and the creative team led by (showrunner) Richard LaGravenese will illuminate her story with the clarity and nuance it deserves.&#8221;</p>
<p>McCarthy is best often known as a comedian, but has also taken on dramatic roles.</p>
<p>There is not any release date for the show.</p>
<p>Originally published: <time datetime="2024-09-10 12:38:28">September 10, 2024 at 12:38 pm</time></p>
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<p><em>image credit : www.mercurynews.com</em></p>
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		<title>Edgar Bronfman&#039;s offer for Paramount could involve Shari Redstone</title>
		<link>https://bloggingthree.soflytech.com/2024/08/edgar-bronfmans-offer-for-paramount-could-involve-shari-redstone/</link>
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		<dc:creator><![CDATA[enzo2go]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sat, 24 Aug 2024 08:28:35 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Business]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Bronfman39s]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Edgar]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[involve]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[offer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Paramount]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Redstone]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Shari]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://bloggingthree.soflytech.com/?p=12837</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Edgar Bronfman Jr.’s offer for a majority stake in Outstanding Global could tie Shari Redstone to the corporate if his offer is successful. Bronfman is willing to maintain Redstone, currently Paramount&#39;s non-executive chairman, at the corporate if Paramount&#39;s special committee accepts his consortium&#39;s offer for majority shareholder National Amusements, an individual accustomed to the matter [&#8230;]]]></description>
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<p>Edgar Bronfman Jr.’s offer for a majority stake in <span class="QuoteInBody-quoteNameContainer" data-test="QuoteInBody" id="RegularArticle-QuoteInBody-1">Outstanding Global<span class="QuoteInBody-inlineButton"><span class="AddToWatchlistButton-watchlistContainer" id="-WatchlistDropdown" data-analytics-id="-WatchlistDropdown"><button class="AddToWatchlistButton-watchlistButton" aria-label="Add To Watchlist" data-testid="dropdown-btn"><span class="AddToWatchlistButton-addWatchListFromTag"></span></button></span></span></span>    could tie Shari Redstone to the corporate if his offer is successful.</p>
<p>Bronfman is willing to maintain Redstone, currently Paramount&#39;s non-executive chairman, at the corporate if Paramount&#39;s special committee accepts his consortium&#39;s offer for majority shareholder National Amusements, an individual accustomed to the matter said.</p>
<p>Bronfman has raised $6 billion to challenge Skydance Media&#39;s ownership of National Amusements, the holding company founded by Sumner Redstone, people accustomed to the matter said. Both Bronfman&#39;s and Skydance&#39;s offers would also include money to purchase out a portion of Paramount Global&#39;s common stock.</p>
<p>Bronfman&#39;s offer, at a price of $6 billion, would give about 20 percent of Class B holders at $16 per share. Skydance would pay out about 50 percent of Paramount&#39;s current common stockholders at $15 per share as a part of its offer, people accustomed to the offer said.</p>
<p>It just isn&#8217;t clear whether Redstone prefers one offer over the opposite. Paramount Global&#39;s special committee will resolve by August 28 whether Bronfman&#39;s offer is a greater deal for shareholders. If the committee decides Bronfman&#39;s offer is best, Skydance could have 4 business days to match it. The entire process should be accomplished by September 5.</p>
<p>Bronfman has a couple of days left to lift extra money for a rival bid against Skydance, which last month agreed to an $8 billion deal to merge with Paramount Global. The special committee earlier this week prolonged the so-called &#8220;go-shop&#8221; period &#8211; during which competing offers could be considered &#8211; by 15 days to think about Bronfman&#39;s original offer.</p>
<p>One of the people involved in Bronfman&#39;s bid is former AOL CEO Jon Miller, suggesting Redstone could potentially have more control over a future Paramount Global than she would get at Skydance. Miller, an in depth Redstone ally, has connected Bronfman with potential capital and would likely take a job in the corporate if it got here under Bronfman&#39;s leadership &#8212; possibly a board seat and an operating job &#8212; people accustomed to the matter say. Bronfman can be CEO of the corporate if his deal is accepted and followed through, the people said.</p>
<p>Miller, Redstone and Redstone&#39;s son-in-law Jason Ostheimer co-run Advancit Capital, a small enterprise capital firm that invests in media and technology. The trio is the one person on <a href="https://www.advancitcapital.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the corporate website.</a> Miller has also served as a de facto strategic adviser to Redstone for a few years, in accordance with people accustomed to the matter.</p>
<p>Redstone has not spoken to Miller concerning the offer, in accordance with people accustomed to the matter.</p>
<p>Although the Redstone family and the Bronfman family moved in similar circles and donated generously to Jewish foundations, amongst other things, Edgar Bronfman Jr. and Shari Redstone didn&#8217;t meet often and there isn&#8217;t a close relationship between them, two of the people said.</p>
<p>Skydance CEO David Ellison and Redstone have had several discussions about the potential for Redstone remaining with the corporate as a shareholder in a combined company between Skydance and Paramount Global, in accordance with people accustomed to the matter.</p>
<p>According to an individual accustomed to her considering, Redstone is taking a wait-and-see approach to any future involvement with Paramount Global, whatever the company&#39;s ownership.</p>
<p>Spokespeople for Redstone, Bronfman, the Paramount Global special committee and Skydance all declined to comment.</p>
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<h2 class="ArticleBody-subtitle"><a id="headline0"></a>Last minute bid</h2>
<div class="group">
<p>Bronfman has in recent weeks rallied many individuals all for a stake in Paramount Global, including film producer Steven Paul and Patron co-founder John Paul DeJoria, who had previously considered a bid of their very own, in accordance with an individual accustomed to the matter. Others include Fortress Investment Group, the lending arm of personal equity firm BC Partners, and John Martin, the previous CEO of Turner Broadcasting.</p>
<p>Bronfman&#39;s funding comes from many alternative sources, potentially raising regulatory concerns if an excessive amount of money comes from foreign entities. The many alternative backers could also make Bronfman&#39;s bid riskier than Skydance&#39;s bid, which is backed by private equity firm RedBird Capital and multi-billionaire Larry Ellison, father of David Ellison.</p>
<p>Bronfman is chairman of <span class="QuoteInBody-quoteNameContainer" data-test="QuoteInBody" id="RegularArticle-QuoteInBody-5">Fubo,<span class="QuoteInBody-inlineButton"><span class="AddToWatchlistButton-watchlistContainer" id="-WatchlistDropdown" data-analytics-id="-WatchlistDropdown"><button class="AddToWatchlistButton-watchlistButton" aria-label="Add To Watchlist" data-testid="dropdown-btn"><span class="AddToWatchlistButton-addWatchListFromTag"></span></button></span></span></span>    a sports streaming service, and the previous head of Universal and Warner Music.</p>
<p>Skydance&#39;s lawyers have sent a letter to Paramount Global&#39;s special committee urging the corporate to stop negotiations with Bronfman, in accordance with the Wall Street Journal. <a href="https://www.wsj.com/business/media/skydance-demands-that-paramount-stops-negotiating-with-bronfman-766f2e1f" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported on Thursday.</a> Skydance said Paramount Global violated the terms of the Go-Shop agreement by failing to tell Skydance of the planned window extension, the report said.</p>
<p>Skydance also argued that the special committee didn&#8217;t have the correct to increase the deadline because a suggestion &#8220;could reasonably be expected to result in a better offer.&#8221; Skydance argued that Bronfman&#39;s offer didn&#8217;t meet those criteria.</p>
<p><strong>WATCH: Power struggle within the media: Paramount deal at risk?</strong></p>
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<p><em>image credit : www.cnbc.com</em></p>
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		<title>Paramount unveils job cuts and streaming JV plans at annual meeting</title>
		<link>https://bloggingthree.soflytech.com/2024/06/paramount-unveils-job-cuts-and-streaming-jv-plans-at-annual-meeting/</link>
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		<dc:creator><![CDATA[enzo2go]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Tue, 04 Jun 2024 14:16:19 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Business]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[annual]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cuts]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[job]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[meeting]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Paramount]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[plans]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[streaming]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[unveils]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://bloggingthree.soflytech.com/?p=5361</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[The current leadership of Outstanding Global presented a plan for the longer term on the annual shareholders meeting Tuesday, unless the corporate is sold. CBS CEO George Cheeks, Paramount Media Networks CEO Chris McCarthy and Paramount Pictures CEO Brian Robbins &#8211; collectively the corporate&#39;s Office of the CEO &#8211; laid out strategic priorities, including exploring [&#8230;]]]></description>
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<div id="RegularArticle-ArticleBody-5" data-module="ArticleBody" data-test="articleBody-2" data-analytics="RegularArticle-articleBody-5-2"><span class="HighlightShare-hidden" style="top:0;left:0"></span></p>
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<p>The current leadership of <span class="QuoteInBody-quoteNameContainer" data-test="QuoteInBody" id="RegularArticle-QuoteInBody-1">Outstanding Global<span class="QuoteInBody-inlineButton"><span class="AddToWatchlistButton-watchlistContainer" id="-WatchlistDropdown" data-analytics-id="-WatchlistDropdown"><button class="AddToWatchlistButton-watchlistButton" aria-label="Add To Watchlist" data-testid="dropdown-btn"><span class="AddToWatchlistButton-addWatchListFromTag"></span></button></span></span></span>    presented a plan for the longer term on the <a href="https://central.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/PARA2024" target="_blank" rel="noopener">annual shareholders meeting</a> Tuesday, unless the corporate is sold.</p>
<p>CBS CEO George Cheeks, Paramount Media Networks CEO Chris McCarthy and Paramount Pictures CEO Brian Robbins &#8211; collectively the corporate&#39;s Office of the CEO &#8211; laid out strategic priorities, including exploring streaming three way partnership opportunities with other media firms, cutting $500 million in costs and divesting non-core assets.</p>
<p>The presentation comes at an inopportune time. Paramount has agreed to terms of the merger with a consortium of David Ellison&#39;s Skydance Media and personal equity firms RedBird Capital and KKR, CNBC reported Monday. The deal still awaits approval from Paramount&#39;s majority shareholder Shari Redstone, who owns National Amusements, which in turn owns 77% of Paramount&#39;s Class A shares.</p>
<p>Redstone supports the leadership team within the Office of the CEO, which has led the corporate since former CEO Bob Bakish resigned in late April.</p>
<p>The plan, which Paramount Global shareholders will hear on Tuesday, is actually intended to function a fallback for Redstone if she decides to not sell.</p>
<p>The strategies are being developed with the aim of reducing Paramount’s debt and returning the corporate to an investment grade rating. Earlier this yr, the corporate’s credit standing was downgraded to <a href="https://variety.com/2024/tv/news/paramount-global-junk-rating-sp-global-1235953838/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Junk status</a>.</p>
<p>Paramount had long-term <a href="https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/813828/000119312524122356/d788256d8k.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Debts</a> As of March thirty first.</p>
<p>Paramount shares fell about 2 percent in early trading Tuesday.</p>
<p>At the start of Tuesday&#39;s presentation, Redstone identified the unorthodox structure of the CEO&#39;s office.</p>
<p>During the presentations, each executive noted that their future plans will deal with expanding content and franchises, but will deal with cutting spending and reducing debt.</p>
<p>&#8220;We will be careful in our capital investment, giving our best-in-class content the highest priority,&#8221; Robbins said throughout the presentation on Tuesday.</p>
<p>Cheeks said Tuesday that the corporate is &#8220;prepared to move quickly&#8221; on cost reductions, with a deal with &#8220;duplicate teams and functions across the organization, real estate, marketing and other corporate overhead categories.&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;To be clear, $500 million in cost savings is just the beginning,&#8221; Cheeks said, adding that more details, including timing, could be announced at the corporate&#39;s next earnings call in August.</p>
<p>Cheeks added that they&#8217;ll review various strategic initiatives that may help &#8220;optimize the asset mix and use proceeds to pay down debt.&#8221;</p>
<p>On Tuesday, Robbins said the corporate has been &#8220;aggressively exploring all options&#8221; in terms of partnerships with other streamers. He noted that Paramount has already received &#8220;significant interest&#8221; from other potential streaming partners for a three way partnership that may include the corporate&#39;s flagship service, Paramount+, which has greater than 70 million subscribers but continues to lose money.</p>
<p>&#8220;To be clear, we&#39;re not talking about marketing packages here. This is a deep and far-reaching relationship,&#8221; Robbins said.</p>
<p>The company can also be open to expanding content licensing, he said.</p>
<p>McCarthy said Paramount can also be currently considering divesting assets.</p>
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<p><em>image credit : www.cnbc.com</em></p>
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		<title>Paramount CEO Bob Bakish resigns</title>
		<link>https://bloggingthree.soflytech.com/2024/04/paramount-ceo-bob-bakish-resigns/</link>
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		<dc:creator><![CDATA[enzo2go]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 29 Apr 2024 21:59:36 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Business]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Bakish]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Bob]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CEO]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Paramount]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[resigns]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://bloggingthree.soflytech.com/?p=2021</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Paramount Global CEO Bob Bakish resigns The company announced this on Mondayas merger negotiations with Skydance Media proceed. Bakish climbed the company ladder after joining Viacom in 1997 until he became the corporate&#39;s CEO in 2016. After the merger of Viacom and CBS, he became CEO of the combined company in 2019, which was later [&#8230;]]]></description>
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<div id="RegularArticle-ArticleBody-5" data-module="ArticleBody" data-test="articleBody-2" data-analytics="RegularArticle-articleBody-5-2"><span class="HighlightShare-hidden" style="top:0;left:0"></span></p>
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<p><span class="QuoteInBody-quoteNameContainer" data-test="QuoteInBody" id="RegularArticle-QuoteInBody-1">Paramount Global<span class="QuoteInBody-inlineButton"><span class="AddToWatchlistButton-watchlistContainer" id="-WatchlistDropdown" data-analytics-id="-WatchlistDropdown"><button class="AddToWatchlistButton-watchlistButton" aria-label="Add To Watchlist" data-testid="dropdown-btn"><span class="AddToWatchlistButton-addWatchListFromTag"></span></button></span></span></span>    CEO Bob Bakish resigns <a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/paramount-global-announces-new-leadership-302130571.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The company announced this on Monday</a>as merger negotiations with Skydance Media proceed.</p>
<p>Bakish climbed the company ladder after joining Viacom in 1997 until he became the corporate&#39;s CEO in 2016.  After the merger of Viacom and CBS, he became CEO of the combined company in 2019, which was later renamed Paramount Global.  He can also be resigning from the corporate&#39;s board, Paramount said Monday.</p>
<p>Bakish might be replaced by what the corporate calls the “CEO’s Office.”  Paramount is now led by CBS President and CEO George Cheeks;  Chris McCarthy, president and CEO of Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios and Paramount Media Networks;  and Brian Robbins, the top of Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon.  The company said the three executives will work closely with Paramount CFO Naveen Chopra and the board.</p>
<p>In Monday&#39;s press release, Paramount said latest leadership is &#8220;working with the board to develop a comprehensive, long-term plan to accelerate growth and develop popular content, significantly streamline operations, strengthen the balance sheet and&#8230; “To further optimize streaming strategy.”</p>
<p>Paramount also reported on it <a href="https://ir.paramount.com/static-files/788ef7dd-d093-4fb6-9e4a-43a81169eb41" goal="_blank" rel="noopener">First quarter results</a> after the bell rang on Monday and held an earnings conference call where the company&#39;s newly appointed chief executives made a brief statement and said they would be back &#8220;shortly&#8221; to provide details on future plans.</p>
<p>Chopra led the call, which lasted less than 10 minutes and did not include questions from analysts.</p>
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<h2 class="ArticleBody-subtitle"><a id="headline0"></a>Streaming Boost</h2>
<div class="group">
<p>The company had mixed results in the first quarter, beating on profit but missing on revenue.  Paramount reported 62 cents per share, excluding items, for the period, versus estimates of 36 cents per share, according to analysts surveyed by LSEG.  According to LSEG, the company reported revenue of $7.69 billion versus analyst estimates of $7.73 billion.</p>
<p>Total revenue increased 6% compared to the same period last year, driven by streaming and the Super Bowl.</p>
<p>The company&#39;s direct-to-consumer streaming segment, which includes flagship services Paramount+, Pluto TV and BET+, saw revenue rise 24% to about $1.88 billion.</p>
<p>Paramount said it added 3.7 million Paramount+ subscribers during the quarter, bringing its total to 71 million.  Streaming-related losses narrowed to $286 million, compared to losses of $511 million in the same period last year.</p>
<p>Advertising revenue in the streaming segment increased, primarily due to the Super Bowl, which aired in February on CBS, cable television network Nickelodeon and Paramount+.</p>
<p>Likewise, advertising revenue at Paramount&#39;s TV media unit, which includes network CBS and cable TV networks such as MTV and Nickelodeon, rose 14% due to the Super Bowl.</p>
<p>The top NFL event provided a boost in what had previously been a weak advertising environment for traditional television networks.  Still, streaming platforms and digital companies are reporting increasing advertising revenue, suggesting that the market is recovering, at least in these areas.</p>
<p>Overall, TV media revenue increased 1% to $5.23 billion.  Affiliate and subscription revenue fell 3% as cuts continued, and licensing and other revenue fell 25%, including the impact of strikes by Hollywood writers and actors on content available for licensing.</p>
<p>Paramount&#39;s film entertainment division&#39;s revenue rose 3% to $605 million on the back of the releases of &#8220;Mean Girls&#8221; and &#8220;Bob Marley: One Love.&#8221;</p>
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<h2 class="ArticleBody-subtitle"><a id="headline1"></a>Bakic finish</h2>
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<p>Bakish&#39;s ouster comes ever closer to a potential merger between Paramount and Skydance Media, CNBC previously reported.  The companies are in exclusive talks to continue the deal until May 3, and a special committee is already in place.</p>
<p>Bakish has privately opposed the merger, claiming it would dilute common shareholders, CNBC reported.  Under the proposed transaction, nearly 50% of the combined company would be owned by Skydance and its private equity backers, while common shareholders would own the remainder of Paramount, which would remain publicly traded.</p>
<p>On Saturday, CNBC reported that Bakish could exit as CEO as early as Monday and ahead of the earnings release after he lost the trust of Paramount Global majority shareholder Shari Redstone, who could view his removal as a means to expedite a Skydance deal, reported CNBC Monday.</p>
<p>The departure also comes as Paramount has been negotiating with cable company Charter Communications to carry its television networks, including CBS and MTV.  The deadline for these negotiations is Tuesday.</p>
<p>The special committee – which is responsible for accepting or rejecting deals – and Skydance, which is backed by private equity firms <span class="QuoteInBody-quoteNameContainer" data-test="QuoteInBody" id="RegularArticle-QuoteInBody-9">KKR<span class="QuoteInBody-inlineButton"><span class="AddToWatchlistButton-watchlistContainer" id="-WatchlistDropdown" data-analytics-id="-WatchlistDropdown"><button class="AddToWatchlistButton-watchlistButton" aria-label="Add To Watchlist" data-testid="dropdown-btn"><span class="AddToWatchlistButton-addWatchListFromTag"></span></button></span></span></span>    and RedBird Capital Partners have focused on how to value Skydance&#39;s assets in a merger and how much equity to add to the company, CNBC previously reported.</p>
<p>Skydance plans to name its CEO, David Ellison, to head Paramount if the deal goes through, CNBC previously reported.</p>
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<p><em>image credit : www.cnbc.com</em></p>
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		<title>Paramount and Skydance are only one step closer to a merger agreement: sources</title>
		<link>https://bloggingthree.soflytech.com/2024/04/paramount-and-skydance-are-only-one-step-closer-to-a-merger-agreement-sources/</link>
					<comments>https://bloggingthree.soflytech.com/2024/04/paramount-and-skydance-are-only-one-step-closer-to-a-merger-agreement-sources/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[enzo2go]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Fri, 26 Apr 2024 03:51:36 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Business]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[agreement]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[closer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[merger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Paramount]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Skydance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sources]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[step]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://bloggingthree.soflytech.com/?p=1627</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Paramount Global and Skydance Media are making progress on a deal that may merge the media corporations and buy out controlling shareholder Shari Redstone, people acquainted with the matter say. Paramount Global&#39;s special committee, which is answerable for accepting or rejecting deals, and David Ellison&#39;s Skydance Media, backed by private equity firms KKR and RedBird [&#8230;]]]></description>
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<p><span class="QuoteInBody-quoteNameContainer" data-test="QuoteInBody" id="RegularArticle-QuoteInBody-1">Paramount Global<span class="QuoteInBody-inlineButton"><span class="AddToWatchlistButton-watchlistContainer" id="-WatchlistDropdown" data-analytics-id="-WatchlistDropdown"><button class="AddToWatchlistButton-watchlistButton" aria-label="Add To Watchlist" data-testid="dropdown-btn"><span class="AddToWatchlistButton-addWatchListFromTag"></span></button></span></span></span>    and Skydance Media are making progress on a deal that may merge the media corporations and buy out controlling shareholder Shari Redstone, people acquainted with the matter say.</p>
<p>Paramount Global&#39;s special committee, which is answerable for accepting or rejecting deals, and David Ellison&#39;s Skydance Media, backed by private equity firms KKR and RedBird Capital Partners, are narrowing down the query of how and the way much the assets of Skydance can be valued in a merger. Equity can be added to the corporate as a part of a recapitalization, the people told CNBC.</p>
<p>The sides are near agreeing on a price for Skydance, said the people, who asked to not be identified since the discussions are private.  The entertainment company can be valued at about $5 billion and would merge with Paramount Global, it said.  Skydance CEO Ellison and the private equity firms plan to lift about $4.5 billion to $5 billion in latest equity, the people said;  Part of that — about $2 billion — can be used to pay Redstone, and one other significant slice can be used to pay down debt.</p>
<p>The buyers would like to finish the deal in May, people said.  Three of the people said Paramount Global was slow to supply data to the Skydance consortium during due diligence, barely pushing back the timeline for a deal.  The exclusivity window for merger talks ends May 3, however the Skydance consortium wants to increase it by two weeks, the people said.</p>
<p>Skydance plans to call Ellison as CEO of Paramount Global and former NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell as president, two of the people said.  Paramount&#39;s current CEO, Bob Bakish, can be leaving the corporate, the people said.</p>
<p>Separately, private equity firm Apollo Global Management and Sony have held preliminary discussions about collaborating on a deal that may buy out all of Paramount Global&#39;s shareholders at a premium, in accordance with people acquainted with the matter.  The special committee has not received specific details in regards to the offer and doesn&#8217;t consider it a competitive offer to Skydance, two of the people said.</p>
<p>Still, the committee had more details about an initial offer from Apollo, which it ignored in favor of exclusive discussions with Skydance, one in all the people said.  The special committee favored Skydance&#39;s offer over Apollo&#39;s partially since it offered shareholders future upside by keeping the corporate public with a cleaner balance sheet, the person said.</p>
<p>Spokespeople for Apollo, the special committee of Paramount Global, Paramount Global and the Skydance consortium declined to comment.</p>
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<h2 class="ArticleBody-subtitle"><a id="headline0"></a>Last big hurdle</h2>
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<p>Paramount Global&#39;s renewal agreement with Charter Communications for CBS and its cable networks stays a significant hurdle.  That deal is relevant to Paramount Global&#39;s value, which could take successful if Charter abandons the networks or agrees to a lower carriage rate, the people said.</p>
<p>The deadline for this agreement is April thirtieth.  Paramount Global reports first quarter results a day early, on April twenty ninth.</p>
<p>Paramount Global continues to depend on its traditional TV business, which accounts for about two-thirds of the corporate&#39;s total revenue.</p>
<p>There are signs that Charter could prove a tricky negotiator with Paramount Global: Last 12 months, the cable provider, the second-largest within the U.S., was briefly <a href="https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2023-08-31/disney-pulls-abc-espn-from-charter-spectrum-in-fee-dispute" target="_blank" rel="noopener">stopped carrying Disney&#39;s networks</a> when renewal negotiations between these two corporations failed.  The parties reached an agreement ten days later.</p>
<p>Paramount&#39;s cable networks are far less popular than Disney&#39;s ESPN, which could put Bakish in a weak position.</p>
<p>The timing of the renewal and contract negotiations created a clumsy dynamic through which Bakish, who would ultimately leave the corporate in a Skydance merger, will control Paramount Global&#39;s fate with Charter.</p>
<p>To date, Bakish has consistently signed renewal deals with major pay-TV distribution partners since taking up as CEO, dating back to his time leading Viacom starting in 2016.</p>
<p>Bakish has privately opposed the Skydance deal since it dilutes common shareholders, people acquainted with the matter say.  Several Paramount Global investors have also publicly written letters to the corporate&#39;s board urging directors not to maneuver forward with the Skydance deal, arguing that it is going to give Redstone an enormous premium for his or her majority stake and leave common shareholders out within the cold .</p>
<p>Under the terms of the deal, nearly 50% of the corporate can be owned by Skydance and its private equity partners, CNBC reported April 5.  The remainder of the corporate can be owned by common shareholders and the corporate would proceed to be publicly traded.</p>
<p>“At Paramount, we are always looking for ways to create shareholder value.  And to be clear, this applies to all shareholders,” Bakish said <a href="https://seekingalpha.com/article/4674571-paramount-global-para-q4-2023-earnings-call-transcript" target="_blank" rel="noopener">during his company&#39;s last earnings announcement, </a>in February.</p>
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<p><em>image credit : www.cnbc.com</em></p>
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