US film industry: Paramount completes takeover of Warner Bros
The new umbrella company Skydance is going public on the New York Stock Exchange
Quick Look
- Paramount has completed its $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros.
- The shares of the new parent company Skydance will be traded on the New York Stock Exchange from Tuesday after overcoming legal hurdles and political criticism.
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Why It Matters
Paramount's acquisition of WBD was controversial due to the owners' political connections and concerns about editorial independence.
The US entertainment group Paramount has completed the takeover of competitor Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), which has been hotly disputed for months. As the company announced, the shares of the new parent company Skydance will be traded on the New York Stock Exchange from this Tuesday (local time).
The takeover has a volume of 111 billion US dollars (almost 99 billion euros). With this offer, Paramount had outdone its streaming competitor Netflix, which had agreed to a takeover with WBD at the end of 2025 for 83 billion US dollars (almost 74 billion euros). In February, Netflix withdrew, and the US government later allowed Paramount to take over - a move that had sparked criticism because Paramount boss David Ellison and his father, tech billionaire Larry Ellison, are supporters of US President Donald Trump.
Specifically, critics feared that the merger could damage the editorial independence of broadcasters under the WBD umbrella, such as CNN. In July, twelve US states filed suit against the planned deal, citing concerns about possible market manipulation. At the end of September, a court approved a settlement between Paramount and the plaintiff states.
Open Questions
- How will the merger affect CNN's editorial line in the long term?
