Paramount Global

• 1. Corporate Lineage And Mergers

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  The year 1912 marked the founding of Famous Players Film Company, which would eventually evolve into Paramount Pictures. CBS emerged in 1927 as a separate entity, though Paramount held a 49% ownership stake between 1929 and 1932. A division called CBS Television Film Sales formed in 1952 to handle syndication rights for network-owned series. This unit underwent multiple name changes, becoming CBS Films in 1958, then CBS Enterprises in January 1968, before finally adopting the acronym Viacom in 1970. New FCC rules forbidding television networks from owning syndication companies forced a spin-off of this division in 1971. These regulations remained in effect until their complete abolition in 1993. In 1986, Viacom purchased MTV Networks and Showtime/The Movie Channel Inc. from Warner Communications and American Express. Theater operator company National Amusements acquired Viacom itself in 1987. Gulf and Western Industries had previously acquired Paramount Pictures in 1966, rebranding it as Paramount Communications in 1989. Viacom then purchased Paramount Communications in 1994. The largest acquisition occurred in 1999 when Viacom announced plans to merge with its former parent, Westinghouse Electric Corporation, which had merged with CBS in 1995. That merger completed in 2000, reuniting CBS with its former syndication division. On the 31st of December 2005, Viacom split into two separate entities: the second incarnation of CBS Corporation and the second incarnation of Viacom.

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• 2. Initial Operations And Divestitures

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  the 13th of August 2019 saw CBS and Viacom officially announce their merger under the name ViacomCBS, with Shari Redstone serving as chair. The combined entity began trading on NASDAQ under symbols VIAC and VIACA after CBS Corporation delisted shares from the New York Stock Exchange. By the 10th of December 2019, days after the merger closed, Bob Bakish announced plans to divest Black Rock, the building that housed CBS headquarters since 1964. He stated that money would be put to better use elsewhere. Just ten days later, on the 20th of December 2019, ViacomCBS agreed to acquire a 49% minority stake in Miramax film studio for $379 million. This purchase included long-term distribution rights for Paramount Pictures over Miramax's library and first-look agreements for new projects. Executive vice president Dana McClintock departed the company after 27 years in CBS Communications on the 2nd of March 2020. Three days later, management announced plans to potentially sell its Simon & Schuster publishing unit, arguing it lacked significant connection to broader business goals. On the 14th of September 2020, ViacomCBS reached an agreement to sell CNET Media Group to Red Ventures for $500 million. That deal included ZDNet, GameSpot, TV Guide digital assets, Metacritic, and Chowhound, closing on the 30th of October 2020. In November 2020, Penguin Random House agreed to purchase Simon & Schuster for $2.175 billion, though U.S. federal judge Florence Y. Pan blocked the deal two years later. On the 16th of August 2021, ViacomCBS sold the CBS Building to Harbor Group International for $760 million while leasing space back under a short-term arrangement.

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• 3. Rebranding To Paramount Global

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  the 15th of February 2022 marked a pivotal moment when ViacomCBS announced during an investor presentation that it would change its name to Paramount Global effective the following day. A memo to staff explained the rebranding aimed to leverage the iconic global name and reflect their aspirations. Following this rename, Paramount Pictures changed its website URL from paramount.com to paramountpictures.com, allowing Paramount to claim paramount.com as its primary domain. Nexstar Media Group announced on August 15 that it would acquire a 75% majority share in The CW network. The remaining 25% would be shared equally between Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery. Since the deal required no regulatory approvals unlike Big Four networks, Nexstar took operational control immediately. CEO Mark Pedowitz stepped down, with Dennis Miller assuming his role as president of The CW. The transaction closed on the 3rd of October 2023. By the 5th of May 2023, Paramount's CBS News and Stations unit announced eight CW stations would become independent on September 1 per the Nexstar buyout agreement. On the 7th of August 2023, Paramount agreed to sell Simon & Schuster to private equity firm KKR for $1.6 billion in cash, completing the sale on October 30.

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• 4. Skydance Acquisition Saga

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  the 20th of December 2023 brought reports that David Zaslav, CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, had met with Bob Bakish to discuss potential merger talks. Fox Business reported internal sources indicating Zaslav was not in deal mode at that time. National Amusements began considering a deal regarding Paramount Global in January 2024, while Skydance Media submitted an all-cash bid of $2.5 billion. During this period, Paramount announced layoffs affecting 800 employees. the 27th of February 2024 saw CNBC report that Warner Bros. Discovery halted merger discussions with Paramount. On the 2nd of April 2024, Paramount and National Amusements approached Skydance for an exclusive acquisition window agreement. Shari Redstone and David Ellison sought a three-way transaction between their respective companies. Sony Pictures expressed interest in acquiring Paramount Global through a joint buyout with Apollo by April 18. Bob Bakish stepped down from his role as president and CEO on the 29th of April 2024. He was replaced by an office led by Brian Robbins, George Cheeks, and Chris McCarthy. The Los Angeles Times characterized this move as an ouster by Redstone due to Bakish's opposition of the Skydance deal. McCarthy received legal designation as interim principal executive officer to comply with SEC regulations requiring one person conduct normal business operations. Sony and Apollo submitted a non-binding offer of $26 billion all-cash on the 2nd of May 2024. Skydance's exclusive negotiation window ended on May 3 without renewal, though they remained interested in buying Paramount.

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• 5. Legal Controversies And Settlements

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  July 2025 marked a significant legal resolution when the company agreed to pay a $16 million bribe to settle a lawsuit filed by President Donald Trump. The suit alleged deceptive editing of an October 2024 60 Minutes interview featuring his Democratic rival Kamala Harris. A few weeks later, on July 15, Late Show host Stephen Colbert publicly called the payment a big fat bribe directed at Trump. Three days after that statement, Paramount announced cancellation of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Later reporting indicated Colbert's talent manager had been informed of the cancellation on June 27. The Writers Guild of America East and West called for New York attorney general Letitia James to investigate wrongdoing at Paramount. They specifically questioned whether the show's cancellation constituted bribery sacrificing free speech to curry favor with the Trump Administration during merger approval processes. This controversy emerged as part of broader scrutiny surrounding the company's financial decisions and leadership changes during this turbulent period.

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• 6. Organizational Structure And Units

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  Paramount Global operated through seven major business segments divided into three primary categories. Filmed Entertainment encompassed film studios alongside Nickelodeon-branded television and film production units. Paramount Motion Picture Group included Paramount Pictures Corporation focusing on theatrical film distribution under labels like Paramount Animation and Paramount Players. Additional assets included Republic Pictures and a 49% stake in Miramax. The group maintained physical studio facilities, post-production capabilities, and archives for restoration purposes. Nickelodeon Studios handled live-action television content production plus Nickelodeon Movies and animation divisions including Avatar Studios and AwesomenessTV. Direct-to-Consumer focused on global over-the-top streaming services such as Paramount+, Pluto TV, SkyShowtime, CBS News 24/7, CBS Sports HQ, and BET+. TV Media comprised linear television networks and content production outside Nickelodeon operations. CBS Entertainment Group managed CBS-branded assets including the CBS network, news stations, sports channels, and Big Ticket Television. It held a 12.5% ownership stake in The CW Television Network while also overseeing BET Media Group containing BET Her and other cable channels. Paramount International Networks distributed international versions of channels across regional hubs covering Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Americas.

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