Paramount Closes $81 Billion Warner Bros. Takeover

Paramount, controlled by Skydance, finalized its purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery on Tuesday, a transaction AP News valued at roughly $81 billion. The close brings some of the most recognizable names in American entertainment and news -- including CNN, HBO, and the Warner movie catalog -- under a single corporate roof led by David Ellison.

The completion followed roughly a year of maneuvering that unsettled the entertainment industry, investors, and policymakers in Washington, according to Axios. A final attempt to stop the transaction failed before it was wrapped up Tuesday, Ars Technica reported, though the reports did not detail who mounted that effort or on what grounds.

With the deal done, the combined company pairs CBS and the Paramount studios with Warner's filmmaking assets, HBO, and CNN. Executives said they intend to fold HBO Max, Paramount+, and Discovery+ into one streaming platform. Outlets reported differing valuations for the transaction: AP News put it at about $81 billion, while Axios described it as a $110 billion deal and Ars Technica cited $111 billion.

The context

The merger caps a process that stretched over about a year and drew attention well beyond Hollywood, with Axios describing a saga that reverberated through Wall Street and Washington. Skydance, the company founded by David Ellison, had already taken control of Paramount before pursuing Warner Bros. Discovery, giving it CBS and the Paramount film and television operations as a base. Adding Warner Bros. Discovery brings in a second major studio along with HBO and CNN, two of the country's most prominent premium television and news brands. The material does not specify when the deal was first announced, what regulatory reviews it faced, or the details of the opposition that tried and failed to block it before Tuesday's close.

Why it matters

The combination concentrates several of the best-known U.S. entertainment and news properties -- Warner Bros., HBO, CNN, CBS, and Paramount -- under one owner, a shift that touches how tens of millions of American consumers watch movies, television, and news. The planned consolidation of HBO Max, Paramount+, and Discovery+ into a single service could change what subscribers pay and which apps they use. Ownership of CNN by the Ellison-led company also places a major national news network under new control, a change with implications for news coverage and media ownership more broadly.

What’s next

Executives have announced plans to merge HBO Max, Paramount+, and Discovery+ into one streaming service, but the material does not say when that combined platform will launch, what it will cost, or what it will be called. Also unresolved in the reporting: how the new ownership will run CNN day to day, and whether the combined company will make leadership or programming changes across its studios and networks.