Paramount completes Warner Bros takeover, creating Skydance

Paramount and Warner Bros logos. [AFP]

Paramount on Tuesday completed its takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, uniting two of Hollywood's most storied studios in a media empire spanning television, news and cinema under the control of David Ellison.

The combined company, renamed Skydance, brings together Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros. Pictures, the CBS News and CNN networks, and the HBO and CBS television brands.

Ellison plans to eventually merge the Paramount+ and HBO Max streaming services over time.

"Today is a historic day, not just for Skydance but for our entire industry," said Ellison, whose ultra-wealthy family has ties to US President Donald Trump.

Skydance shares began trading Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker "SKYD," while Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders will receive about $31 per share in cash.

The deal closed less than a week after a federal judge in California approved a settlement between Paramount and 12 US states that had sued to block the transaction on antitrust grounds.

Paramount won a bidding war against Netflix in February for Warner Bros. Discovery, and the Trump administration approved the deal, one of the largest-ever media mergers, in June without demanding a change to its business.

Skydance, which will have nearly $70 billion in annual revenue, said it is targeting more than $6 billion in cost savings within three years.

Ellison will serve as chairman and CEO, with former Mattel chief Ynon Kreiz as co-CEO in charge of day-to-day operations and integrating the two businesses.

The deal was backed by $47 billion in new equity led by the Ellison family, private equity firm RedBird Capital and the sovereign wealth funds of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Abu Dhabi.

David Ellison's father, billionaire Oracle founder Larry Ellison, provided major funding and a guarantee to lenders backing the deal.

The Ellison family holds the largest equity stake in Skydance.

Opponents in the movie industry said the combined company would slash jobs in a Hollywood already under pressure and reduce the number of films produced every year, while news media groups feared CNN's independence could be compromised.

The decree includes several safeguards on these issues, including a board meant to protect CNN's editorial independence.