Sony is reportedly in discussions with Apollo Global Management over a joint bid to acquire Paramount Global, marking the latest twist in the saga of the Shari Redstone-owned media company.
The New York Times (NYT) reported Thursday that Sony Pictures Entertainment Chairman and CEO Tony Vinciquerra has held talks with Apollo about teaming up to make a bid, although a formal offer has not yet been made. not yet submitted.
Under one potential deal structure, Apollo and Sony would make an all-cash offer for Paramount Global’s outstanding shares and take the company private through a joint venture, the New York Times said. Under the deal, Sony would own a majority stake in Paramount and eventually buy out Apollo’s stake through a buy-and-sell agreement.
Shares of Paramount Global jumped 11% following the release of the New York Times report, as the media company remains in an exclusive 30-day trading window with David Ellison-led studio Skydance Media, whose The offering is backed by private equity firm KKR. RedBird IMI and billionaire Larry Ellison.
Apollo has already made two offers to Paramount Global, both of which were reportedly turned down. The first saw the private equity firm offer $11 billion to acquire Paramount’s film and television studio, while the second was an offer to buy all of Paramount for $27 billion, including debt .
The rejection of this latest offer caused something of a revolt among some Paramount Global shareholders, who claimed the deal was only in the best interests of Redstone and not other shareholders.
The two-step deal would see Skydance acquire Paramount parent company National Amusements for approximately US$2 billion, before Skydance would be acquired by Paramount in an all-stock transaction worth approximately 5 billion US dollars.
Paramount would be led by Ellison and Jeff Shell, the former NBCUniversal CEO who joined RedBird Capital last year, if a deal is reached.
Last week, several shareholders, including Matrix Asset Advisors, Blackwood Capital Management and Aspen Sky Trust, called on the board of directors of Redstone and Paramount to reconsider Apollo’s offer, with threats of legal action if the Paramount-Skydance deal was concluded.
If Skydance’s negotiation window expires and Sony enters the fray, it would raise questions about what it would do with Paramount+, the streaming service behind series like Halo, Tulsa King, The Offer, Special Ops: Lioness and Yellowstone spin-offs 1883 and 1923.
The Japan-headquartered conglomerate has thus far pursued an “arms dealer” strategy, deliberately avoiding owning a major streaming service so it can provide content to a variety of platforms without being beholden to just one .
Sony is reportedly in discussions with Apollo Global Management over a joint bid to acquire Paramount Global, marking the latest twist in the saga of the Shari Redstone-owned media company.
The New York Times (NYT) reported Thursday that Sony Pictures Entertainment Chairman and CEO Tony Vinciquerra has held talks with Apollo about teaming up to make a bid, although a formal offer has not yet been made. not yet submitted.
Under one potential deal structure, Apollo and Sony would make an all-cash offer for Paramount Global’s outstanding shares and take the company private through a joint venture, the New York Times said. Under the deal, Sony would own a majority stake in Paramount and eventually buy out Apollo’s stake through a buy-and-sell agreement.
Shares of Paramount Global jumped 11% following the release of the New York Times report, as the media company remains in an exclusive 30-day trading window with David Ellison-led studio Skydance Media, whose The offering is backed by private equity firm KKR. RedBird IMI and billionaire Larry Ellison.
Apollo has already made two offers to Paramount Global, both of which were reportedly turned down. The first saw the private equity firm offer $11 billion to acquire Paramount’s film and television studio, while the second was an offer to buy all of Paramount for $27 billion, including debt .
The rejection of this latest offer caused something of a revolt among some Paramount Global shareholders, who claimed the deal was only in the best interests of Redstone and not other shareholders.
The two-step deal would see Skydance acquire Paramount parent company National Amusements for approximately US$2 billion, before Skydance would be acquired by Paramount in an all-stock transaction worth approximately 5 billion US dollars.
Paramount would be led by Ellison and Jeff Shell, the former NBCUniversal CEO who joined RedBird Capital last year, if a deal is reached.
Last week, several shareholders, including Matrix Asset Advisors, Blackwood Capital Management and Aspen Sky Trust, called on the board of directors of Redstone and Paramount to reconsider Apollo’s offer, with threats of legal action if the Paramount-Skydance deal was concluded.
If Skydance’s negotiation window expires and Sony enters the fray, it would raise questions about what it would do with Paramount+, the streaming service behind series like Halo, Tulsa King, The Offer, Special Ops: Lioness and Yellowstone spin-offs 1883 and 1923.
The Japan-headquartered conglomerate has thus far pursued an “arms dealer” strategy, deliberately avoiding owning a major streaming service so it can provide content to a variety of platforms without being beholden to just one .