Shareholders approve Paramount takeover of Warner Bros Discovery
WBD shareholders have greenlit the proposed acquisition of the group by Paramount Skydance, marking a decisive milestone in the sale process. The accepted offer stands at $31 per share and covers all operations, including the CNN, TNT, and Discovery networks, the HBO Max platform, and the Warner Bros. studio. This decision follows months of negotiations and competition, notably from Netflix and Comcast, amid intense consolidation within the media sector.
Paramount's sweetened bid in February led Netflix to withdraw from discussions. The agreement also includes a $7bn break-up fee in the event of regulatory failure, as well as the payment of $2.8bn owed to Netflix following the termination of a previous partnership. The transaction is expected to close in Q3, subject to approval from the relevant authorities.
While shareholders validated the buyout, they rejected the exceptional compensation plan intended for executives, including CEO David Zaslav. This package, valued at over $800m, remains advisory and is still expected to be implemented. Both groups are presenting the deal as a key step toward creating a major global entertainment powerhouse.
Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. is a media and entertainment group organized around three areas of activity:
- broadcasting of TV channels in the United States and internationally (47.9% of net sales);
- audiovisual production and distribution (27.6%): primarily production, distribution and licensing of films and television programmes;
- pay-TV broadcasting and streaming (24.5%).
Net sales break down by source of revenue between royalties and distribution rights (50.1%), sales of content and audiovisual rights (26.2%), sales of advertising space (20.6%) and other (3.1%).
The United States accounts for 67.2% of net sales.
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