Paramount extends talks with Edgar Bronfman Jr. Unsettling Skydance Deal
Paramount on Wednesday decided to extend its deadline to evaluate a takeover bid from the media executive Edgar Bronfman Jr., the company said, a sign that the company is taking the offer seriously.
The bid, submitted at the 11th hour, could shake up the company’s existing deal to be acquired by Skydance, an up-and-coming Hollywood studio. After months of negotiations, the $8 billion deal was signed with Skydance. The deal is backed Larry Ellison, Oracle founder whose son David runs Skydance.
“There can be no assurance this process will result in a superior proposal,” the company said, adding that it “does not intend to disclose further developments unless and until it determines such disclosure is appropriate.”
Mr. Bronfman, Skydance and Paramount declined to comment.
Mr. Bronfman, his supporters and the Paramount board of directors will have until early September in order to convince them that their offer is superior. Skydance has the right to make improvements to its bid in order to beat out other suitors. This could prolong the process. Bronfman has assembled an investor group that includes private equity firms such as Fortress Investment Group, and a crypto kingpin from the “Mighty Ducks franchise.” Collectively, they have proposed to pay $6 billion for a controlling stake in National Amusements, Paramount’s parent company, along with a minority stake in the media conglomerate.
The Wall Street Journal earlier on Wednesday reported updated details of Mr. Bronfman’s offer.
The bidding group also has ties to people associated with Shari Redstone, Paramount’s crucial controlling shareholder. Jonathan Miller, who worked with Ms. Redstone in an investment firm, has been appointed as an adviser for the bid. The discussions are private, so people familiar with the arrangement would not speak on the record. The people who spoke to us said that Mr. Bronfman was also friendly with Ms. Redstone, and had met her in recent weeks to talk about his bid. The group received commitments for additional funding in the last 24 hours and met with Paramount to present their vision of the company on Tuesday. Mario Gabelli, a powerful Paramount shareholder, wrote on X Tuesday that the company’s special committee should continue to negotiate with Mr. Bronfman. He noted that there were few downsides to continuing to bargain. Bronfman’s bidding group is a global entity, which could raise concerns with U.S. regulators, who oversee foreign investments, especially since Paramount owns CBS. Fortress, for instance, is owned in part by Mubadala Investment Company (an Emirati sovereign fund), but it is still managed by Fortress Management, based in the U.S. Ms. Redstone’s lawyers stopped the talks in June, as Paramount’s special committee prepared to vote on the Skydance agreement. After a brief cooling-off period, the two sides continued negotiating and announced a deal a few weeks later.
Skydance would be a formidable rival in any bidding war. The company has access almost limitless capital thanks to Mr. Ellison’s business relationships and his family. But Mr. Bronfman, a veteran executive himself, is also a part of the company. Formerly the chairman of Warner Music Group and currently the chairman at Fubo (the sports streaming service), Mr. Bronfman has recently sued to stop the formation of a rival from Disney, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery. A federal judge issued an injunction last week.
