Paramount, the US media giant that recently merged with film studio business Skydance, is reportedly set to lodge a bid to acquire fellow legacy media heavyweight Warner Bros. Discovery, a move that could shake the foundations of the global entertainment industry.
If successful, the move could unite two of the largest media enterprises in the world, bringing together two major sports portfolios that span continents, affecting the likes of the NFL, the PGA Tour, Major League Baseball, and more.
A prospective majority cash bid is reportedly being prepared, backed heavily by Skydance owner and tech mogul Larry Ellison.
To pass such a purchase, however, may be less simple, as there would be major antitrust concerns to contend with if the two were to merge into such a dominant rightsholder.
From a sports perspective, Paramount’s CBS Sports network holds rights to several major properties, including European club soccer’s UEFA Champions League, American football’s NFL, PGA Tour golf, and top-tier college sports. In 2024, it aired the most-watched NFL Super Bowl in history.
In terms of its major rights, WBD has a domestic sports portfolio that includes the French Open tennis grand slam, Major League Baseball, college football, and ice hockey’s NHL, as well as an expansive international portfolio that includes UK pay-TV heavyweight TNT Sports, pan-European network Eurosport, and the HBO Max OTT service.
WBD has already fallen afoul of antitrust concerns in recent years, particularly regarding the ill-fated Venu Sports venture.
Ellison and Skydance’s takeover of Paramount, closed in early August, was only completed a matter of weeks before the media giant went on a significant spending spree, acquiring the rights to MMA’s UFC promotion for a bumper $7.7 billion commitment.
In doing so, the broadcaster has likely ingratiated itself with US President Trump, who is strongly associated with the promotion, and who had previously (successfully) utilized the threat of antitrust action against the merger in an attempt to manipulate the internal hiring policy at Paramount.
With the potential backing of the Trump administration, paramount may have a lever with which to bypass such concerns and actually complete the merger after all.
For WBD’s part, the business is currently undergoing a major split into two publicly traded companies.
The new Streaming and Studios company will consist of Warner Bros. Television, Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group, as well as DC Studios, HBO, and HBO Max. The Global Networks creation, meanwhile, will "include premier entertainment, sports, and news television brands around the world," including TNT Sports in the US, Discovery, as well as the Discovery+ streaming service.
The separation of these two entities is expected to be complete by mid-2026, subject to final conditions such as final approval from the WBD board. David Zaslav, president and chief executive of WBD, will take those same roles in Streaming & Studios, while Gunnar Wiedenfels, the company's chief financial officer, will serve as president and chief executive for Global Networks.
Global Networks will hold a stake of up to 20% in Streaming & Studios, which it plans "to monetize in a tax-efficient manner."
WBD has said the restructuring will enable each company to "be more agile" and will also equip each to be "faster and more aggressive."
An initial restructuring plan around separating the WBD business into linear TV and streaming units was unveiled last December.
In 2024, WBD reported a full-year loss of $11.3 billion, primarily driven by $6.9 billion of asset acquisition costs and restructuring expenses and a $9.1 billion non-cash goodwill impairment charge in the networks segment.
