Paramount World controlling shareholder Shari Redstone, together with the conglom’s co-CEO troika, waved poms poms tonight to employees concerning the upside to Skydance’s $8 billion takeover of the storied studio, CBS community and Viacom cable networks.
Already, staff are sweating over the looming $500 million in cuts that co-CEOs George Cheeks, Chris McCarthy and Brian Robbins would usher in an effort to create higher revenue margins. Now, information of tonight’s Skydance deal.
As we noticed with the Warner Bros Discovery merger, the arrival of latest execs include their very own agendas of contemporary mission statements and future exec groups. What’s usually not realized by incoming bosses –particularly because the Movement Image facet of Paramount has constructed a kickass characteristic slate of A Quiet Place: Day One, Transformers One, Smile 2 and Gladiator II this 12 months — is that if it ain’t broke, effectively then, don’t repair it. A lot of Paramount’s pains are the lofty overhead of working a streaming service, coupled with the challenged linear community house.
Skydance Media‘s David Ellison would be the new Chairman and CEO of the brand new conglom with former NBCUniversal chief Jeff Shell performing as president after the transaction passes the regulatory course of in early 2025.
Redstone praised Skydance in tonight’s memo: “They’ve a transparent strategic imaginative and prescient for the longer term and the sources to construct on Paramount World’s aggressive benefits to drive the Firm’s success.” Skydance has been a giant co-financier to Paramount’s mega tentpoles High Gun: Maverick, Star Trek and the Mission: Not possible franchise.
She additionally thanked employees for increase the leisure firm her father Sumner Redstone created, one through which content material is king. “That has by no means been extra essential than it’s right this moment, when in a cluttered market, we proceed to create content material that resonates with our shoppers, that they frequently search out, and that retains them wanting extra,” she informed staff within the word.
“Our success is due to you, what you’ve gotten achieved individually, and much more importantly, as a staff,” she emphasised.
Regardless of the 45-day go-shop interval, it feels like Redstone has made up her thoughts that Paramount World is Skydance’s to lose: “The settlement we entered into right this moment is topic to closing situations, and we count on the deal to be accomplished within the first half of 2025.”
Learn Redstone’s word to Paramount World staff beneath:
Good night. Simply moments in the past, it was introduced that now we have entered into an settlement underneath which Skydance Media will purchase Nationwide Amusements and merge Skydance’s enterprise with Paramount World. I wished to take this chance to succeed in out to you straight not solely to share the information, however to specific my great gratitude to each one in all you for what now we have been in a position to accomplish collectively for the previous a number of many years.
As , my father constructed Viacom and CBS by bringing collectively a gaggle of one of the best belongings in media, information, and leisure. Whereas folks usually debated whether or not content material or distribution dominated the day, my father was ruled in all of his selections by his perception that content material was certainly king. That has by no means been extra essential than it’s right this moment, when in a cluttered market, we proceed to create content material that resonates with our shoppers, that they frequently search out, and that retains them wanting extra. Our success is due to you, what you’ve gotten achieved individually, and much more importantly, as a staff.
Seeing the way in which you’ve gotten come collectively since we launched Paramount World has been one of many highlights of my years at this firm, and your accomplishments are evident throughout the enterprise. Paramount+ is among the many fastest-growing streaming companies with an distinctive vary of content material interesting to all demographics. CBS has been the #1 broadcast community for 16 years and operating, with clear power throughout genres. Paramount Footage has produced eight #1 films prior to now two years alone and continues to create hit after hit. Our linear networks have delivered culture-shaping content material that excites audiences, together with the launch of the “Taylor Sheridan universe” with Yellowstone on the Paramount Community. And, Pluto TV is right this moment essentially the most broadly distributed FAST service.
As all this was completed, we remained devoted to educating and informing ourselves and our audiences in our efforts to combat hate and discrimination, and supporting different essential causes within the US and around the globe. I’m so grateful to all of you for what now we have been in a position to accomplish to make a distinction.
Our household has at all times been dedicated to persevering with my Dad’s legacy and guaranteeing Paramount’s enduring success. In keeping with that, because the tempo of change within the business has continued to speed up, it has been our duty to work with management to make modifications so as to preserve our aggressive place and gas progress, considering of each the close to and long run. Most lately, this led to the appointment of George Cheeks, Chris McCarthy, and Brian Robbins as Co-CEOs, to take the significant actions essential to bolster the Firm each operationally and financially. I feel we will all agree on their monumental contributions to this firm. On the similar time, as , our Board has targeted on guaranteeing we’re pursuing all alternatives to finest place the Firm for the longer term and maximize worth creation for all shareholders.
As a longtime manufacturing companion to Paramount, Skydance is effectively conscious of what now we have completed through the years and it’s for that cause that they’ve pursued a mix with Paramount. They’ve a transparent strategic imaginative and prescient for the longer term and the sources to construct on Paramount World’s aggressive benefits to drive the Firm’s success.
The settlement we entered into right this moment is topic to closing situations, and we count on the deal to be accomplished within the first half of 2025. Till then, George, Chris, and Brian will proceed to guide the Firm, and they are going to be sharing extra with you shortly. I in fact may also be right here to cheer you on, and help in any approach that I can. It has actually been my honor to work with all of you these previous a number of years, and to see so a lot of our goals come to fruition.
I need to categorical my deepest because of you in your dedication, arduous work, and most significantly your assist of my household and me. In opposition to a difficult business backdrop and plenty of modifications on the firm, you’ve gotten protected Paramount’s belongings and delivered for our audiences. As I’ve mentioned earlier than, and I’ll at all times say, now we have one of the best folks within the enterprise right here at Paramount and it’s actually a privilege to work with you. I’ll at all times treasure the relationships I’ve had with you and the methods now we have labored collectively to differentiate ourselves in our business.
All one of the best, Shari
