Paramount Global CEO steps down amid divisions over potential Skydance merger • FRANCE 24 English

let’s move on to business now on the
program we’re going to start with the
Hollywood leadership struggle this is at
Paramount making the headlines in the US
and around the world as well sha pagr is
here to tell us more about it sha that’s
right Stuart Paramount Global owns such
media Brands as CBS in the US MTV
Nickelodeon and the Paramount film
studios obviously the owner of Classics
of the American movie canon like The
Godfather Titanic or Indiana Jones
they’ve recently been inching closer to
a merger deal with production company
Sky Dan media spurred on by Sherry
Redstone the company’s uh chair and
controlling shareholder who is looking
to cash out and uh could stand to leave
with $2
billion but there have been dissenting
voices within the ranks of Paramount
notably from the company’s CEO Bob
bakish who’s claimed the deal would
dilute the value of stocks held by
Common shareholders as you can see in
the merger the new entity would see
nearly half of it owned by Sky Dan media
and its private Equity buyers while the
rest would be owned by shareholders and
traded publicly this Monday the company
announced that bakish the CEO would step
down from his position replaced by a
triumverate of Executives representing
the different parts of the business uh
bakish actually took the Reigns of the
company back in 2019 those were the
pictures that we saw uh after a previous
merger bringing together CBS and Viacom
uh let’s listen to what he had to say at
the
time with this merger Viacom CBS we will
be one of the largest and most
influential content creators in the
world we’ll be one of a few companies
that will drive the future of our
industry across content and production
distribution and advertising on every
platform for audiences all around the
globe looking at the fundamental
strengths we share I truly believe this
is a great fit yeah the company effect
has faced many challenges since then
hasn’t it mhm the the entertainment
giant continued its decline which also
contributed to reduce the dividend that
was a chair Sherry redstone’s income uh
ENC encouraging her to find a way out
the cable TV industry in the US
collapsed in the face of streaming rals
like Netflix and in spite of Paramount
launching its own platform and since
2016 as you can see there the company’s
market value and share price have fallen
80% % to around $ 122.5 a share
currently question now is whether Bish’s
departure will help facilitate the
merger and help Sher Redstone get out of
the entertainment business before her
asset asset loses even more value going
to take you to Argentina for this next
story lawmakers there debating two
economic reform bills put for by the
country’s new Libertarian president
Javier mle M and among the proposals new
powers for the presidents of private
itiz state-owned companies tax hikes on
income and tax cuts on assets it’s the
second time mle is trying to get his
agenda through a legislature in which
his party controls a small minority of
seats Brian Quinn has the
details outside Argentina’s chamber of
deputies in bueras crowds gathered once
again to protest the radical economic
reforms of President Javier
mle it doesn’t benefit any worker or any
CZ especially those in vulnerable
situations it only benefits the upper
class inside deputies were in the midst
of what was expected to be a marathon
debate as mle tries again to get his
agenda through a parliament in which his
party holds only 38 of 257 seats an
initial Reform Bill dubbed the Omnibus
was passed by deputies in February but
saw so many articles rejected in the
Senate that it was sent back to the
drawing board now paired down from 644
articles to 230 and split in two its
ambition remains sweeping deregulating
Industries giving the executive the
power to privatize public companies
cutting red tape on new foreign
investments as well as raising taxes on
high earners and cutting them on
personal assets Maritime workers in the
country’s oil seed Union have already
launched strikes to protest labor law
reforms and tax hikes on their wages
with more strikes planned for May 9th
we hope that the labor unions will call
for a general strike for a fighting plan
because this must be confronted
regardless of whether it’s approved
today or
not mle is dead set on slashing
Argentina’s budget to bring down
deficits he believes are behind the
country’s Skyhigh inflation which is
running at a nearly 300% annual rate
monthly inflation has been easing but
poverty has been worsening amid the
president’s increasingly harsh program
of a
it Brian Quinn there let’s have a quick
check up then on how the European
markets are doing Sean well we’re seeing
a cautiously positive picture at the
open Tuesday on the major European
borses ahead of a busy day of earnings
and inflation data for the EU in April
being released as you can see the
footsie in London up almost 2/10 of a
percent the Paris C up one1 of a percent
same for the deck in Frankfurt thanks
very much Shan Shan p with the business
here on France 24

US Entertainment giant Paramount Global announced on Monday that CEO Bob Bakish was stepping down. In this edition, we take a closer look at how the company’s controlling shareholder, Shari Redstone, may have been behind this move and why the firm’s value has plummeted 80 percent in the past eight years. Meanwhile in Argentina, President Javier Milei’s second attempt at getting his economic overhaul package through parliament is facing fierce opposition.

Read more about this story in our article: https://f24.my/AINe.y

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