As Paramount, home of the “Top Gun” film franchise and “SpongeBob SquarePants,” continues its merger talks with another media company, Skydance, a new suitor has emerged.
Sony Pictures Entertainment and Apollo Global Management, an investment firm, have discussed collaborating on a joint bid to acquire Paramount, two people familiar with the situation said Thursday.
The two companies have not made an official offer because Paramount is still in exclusive talks with Skydance, said the people, who were granted anonymity to discuss delicate negotiations. However, the potential deal with Skydance has led to significant resistance from investors.
Apollo previously approached Paramount about buying the company for at least $26 billion including debt. However, Paramount’s board continued its more advanced discussions with Skydance as questions arose about Apollo’s financing. A joint bid with Sony would almost certainly allay these concerns and add operational experience and additional capital to Apollo’s already sizable war chest.
Tony Vinciquerra, the chief executive of Sony Pictures Entertainment, has been in discussions with Apollo over the past week about collaborating on an offering, the people said. The offer would be an all-cash offer for Paramount’s outstanding shares, effectively taking the company private through a joint venture.
Terms of the joint offer are still being worked out, and it’s possible Sony and Apollo won’t make an offer for Paramount, one of the people said. One structure could see Apollo taking a minority stake in the joint venture and Sony becoming majority owner and operating the company. At some point, Apollo could cash out its investment, perhaps by selling its shares back to Sony.
If Sony prevails in its bid, the company would most likely operate the Paramount studio as a label within its own media empire, merging the studio’s marketing and distribution arm with its own. It remains to be seen how CBS, one of Paramount’s crown jewels, along with Paramount’s dwindling cable channels, would fit into the combined company.
National Amusements, the company that controls Paramount, has already signed a potential deal with Skydance, controlled by tech scion and Hollywood executive David Ellison. National Amusements is controlled by Shari Redstone, who appointed a special committee of independent board advisers to review Skydance’s offer. Because Skydance’s proposal would give Ms. Redstone cash and Paramount shareholders shares in a new company, several investors have objected.
Unlike Skydance, Sony and Apollo would not seek to buy National Amusements.
Skydance’s deal for Paramount would bring expertise to Paramount, including technology and animation know-how from Mr. Ellison’s management team, which also includes John Lasseter, a former Pixar executive. The plan calls for operational efficiencies and Skydance to boost Paramount’s streaming capabilities.
Paramount shares rose 11 percent in aftermarket trading.
The merger of Paramount and Sony would create a media colossus, bringing together a collection of television networks and film studios under one roof. But Mr. Vinciquerra has experience managing television and studio properties, having worked at both Fox and CBS.
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2024-04-18 22:37:35
www.nytimes.com
