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Paramount Skydance confirmed it has completed its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, finalizing the $111 billion merger that followed Netflix's abandoned bid for WBD earlier this year. The newly combined company announced that its streaming properties—HBO Max, Paramount+ and Discovery+—will eventually be folded into a single unified streaming service.
Skydance confirmed completion of its $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery and said its streaming services—HBO Max, Paramount+ and Discovery+—will eventually unify into a single platform. The company gave no timeline, name, or pricing details for the combined service. Skydance also recently named HBO CEO Casey Bloys as Co-Chair and Chief Content Officer of its direct-to-consumer division.
Paramount, now controlled by Skydance, has officially closed its $81 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery. The combined company will operate under the Paramount Skydance banner, according to the announcement.
Paramount Skydance closed its $111 billion merger with Warner Bros. Discovery after the Supreme Court declined to block it, with Justice Elena Kagan rejecting a last-minute appeal. The combined company, renamed Skydance, now owns Paramount+, HBO Max, CBS, CNN, and sports networks including CBS Sports and TNT Sports. The deal faced a multistate antitrust lawsuit, which California and other states settled last month after a federal judge approved the settlement on September 30.
Skydance, the newly formed company resulting from Paramount's $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, announced it will combine HBO Max and Paramount Plus into a single streaming platform over time. No timeline or new name has been set, and HBO CEO Casey Bloys will oversee the unified service. CEO David Ellison previously said the merger could yield over 200 million direct-to-consumer subscribers.
Paramount has completed its $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, creating a new company called Skydance that consolidates major film studios, networks, and brands like HBO, CBS News, and CNN. The deal, which faced legal and political hurdles, was finalized after settling antitrust concerns with 12 states and includes commitments to produce a set number of films and increase US production spending.
CNN CEO Mark Thompson will remain in his role once Paramount's $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery closes, forming a company called Skydance led by David Ellison and Ynon Kreiz. The merger also keeps Bari Weiss as CBS News editor-in-chief, installs Casey Bloys as chief content officer of streaming, and names Josh Greenstein, Dana Goldberg and George Cheeks to run film and TV units. The deal is expected to close Tuesday, and includes a state-mandated news editorial independence board.
David Ellison announced on X that the newly merged Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery will operate under the name Skydance, after a consent decree settled an antitrust lawsuit from 12 state attorneys general. The $111 billion deal, finalized September 21, follows a year-long bidding war in which Ellison prevailed after Netflix withdrew its interest in Warner Bros. Discovery.
Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery will rebrand as Skydance once their roughly $110 billion merger closes, expected October 6. The merged entity will house Paramount+, HBO Max, CBS, CNN, MTV and franchises like The Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones, DC and Yellowstone.
Netflix confirmed its six-year production partnership with David Fincher has concluded, ending an arrangement first signed in 2020 that gave the streamer exclusive rights to his films, including Mank and The Killer. The move follows similar endings to deals with other high-profile directors like Shawn Levy.
Dish-owned Sling TV has stopped offering Sling Pass, the feature that let customers buy single-day, weekend, or week-long access to cable channels instead of a full monthly subscription. The company confirmed the discontinuation in a statement on its website and in a note sent to customers, as first reported by The Desk.
Paramount CEO David Ellison announced the combined company will be called Skydance once its roughly $110 billion merger with Warner Bros. Discovery closes, expected October 6. The new entity will include Paramount+, HBO Max, CBS, CNN, MTV, TBS, Comedy Central and Food Network, along with franchises like 'The Lord of the Rings,' 'Game of Thrones,' the DC Universe and 'Yellowstone.'