Strong possibility of change in control at Paramount

The battle for control of Paramount Global, the current owner of the Ten TV Network in Australia, is heating up as US media investment house, Skydance, is in talks to acquire a majority stake in National Amusements, the company that controls Paramount.

After Paramount’s shares surged 15% in Wednesday’s Wall Street trading session, Skydance’s founder, David Ellison, is reportedly in discussions with Shari Redstone, the head of National Amusements. While the shares dipped slightly in after-hours trading, the market buzz is that Skydance is in the lead to take control of Paramount Global.

National Amusements, which was established by Sumner Redstone decades ago, holds a significant portion of Paramount’s voting shares and operates a movie theatre circuit. Bloomberg reported that a tentative deal has been reached between Ellison and Redstone, with a 30-day exclusive negotiating period in place.

The potential acquisition by Skydance would involve two steps: first acquiring National Amusements, and then merging Skydance with Paramount. However, there may be obstacles due to the involvement of Chinese entertainment giant Tencent and UAE Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan’s investment vehicle, RedBird Capital, as investors in Skydance.

Despite Paramount Global’s financial challenges, including debt and streaming losses, the prospect of a new owner has sparked interest in the industry. With Skydance’s strong backing from investors like KKR and CJ ENM, the future of Paramount could be in for a major shakeup. Stay tuned as the negotiations unfold in the coming weeks.