Comcast, Netflix and Paramount-Skydance reportedly have interest in buying the media giant.<\/p>\n
Warner Brothers Discovery \u2014 the parent company of CNN and HBO Max is considering a sale amid unsolicited interest in the company marking the latest shake up across US legacy media.<\/p>\n
The New York City based media conglomerate announced the possible sale on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
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Several major media giants have reportedly expressed interest. Netflix and Comcast are said to be interested parties according to CNBC which cited unnamed sources familiar with the deal. That follows interest from Paramount-Skydance<\/a>.<\/p>\n In June, Warner Bros Discovery announced it would split Warner Bros and Discovery Global units separating its streaming businesses from its cable network unit. The company has doubled down in the streaming space in recent weeks.\u00a0 On Thursday, CNN announced a new subscription streaming service called CNN All Access \u2013 two years after CNN+ \u2014 its short-lived streaming platform \u2014 shuttered.<\/p>\n A sale or a split would be one of the most consequential reshaping moments<\/a> in the media industry, potentially prompting other legacy media houses to revisit their own structures. Streaming has fundamentally reshaped the media industry, leaving traditional broadcasters with mounting debt, higher content budgets and fragmented viewership.<\/p>\n \u201cThis latest development potentially opens up further discussions with interested parties. For Hollywood and other traditional media giants, all roads lead to consolidation,\u201d PP Foresight analyst Paolo Pescatore said.<\/p>\n The company is also considering an alternative separation structure that would enable a merger of Warner Bros and a spin-off of Discovery Global.<\/p>\n The Ellison in the room<\/p>\n Warner Brothers Discovery already rejected an initial bid from Paramount \u2014 now led by David Ellison, the son of Larry Ellison, cofounder of Oracle and a key ally of US President Donald Trump \u2014 Bloomberg News reported earlier this month, because the offer of around $20 per share was too low.<\/p>\n Skydance\u2019s advances soon after snapping up Paramount speak to the Ellison family\u2019s voracious appetite to dominate the global media landscape amid a favourable regulatory regime in the United States.<\/p>\n Analysts believe David Ellison\u2019s deep pockets \u2013 backed by his father, Oracle cofounder and the world\u2019s second-richest person Larry Ellison \u2013 give him the firepower to take the risk.<\/p>\n The elder Ellison\u2019s close ties with US President Donald Trump may also smooth regulatory hurdles and avoid the scrutiny that would usually come with such a merger, analysts say.<\/p>\n The decline of legacy media, driven by linear TV cord-cutting, as well as the shift of audiences and advertisers to streaming platforms, has forced traditional media companies to rethink their business structures.<\/p>\n Ellison\u2019s looming involvement raised concerns about how CNN could cover the White House.<\/p>\n Among the vocal critics is Dan Rather, who served as the anchor of the CBS Evening News for 24 years.<\/p>\n \u201cAmericans have to be concerned about the consolidation of huge billionaires getting control of nearly all of the major news outlets,\u201d Rather said in an interview on Andy Cohen\u2019s SiriusXM show in September.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s pretty hard to be optimistic about the possibilities of the Ellisons buying CNN.\u201d<\/p>\n Before the Paramount \u2013 Skydance Merger, CBS settled a lawsuit that alleged that the network\u2019s long-standing newsmagazine 60 Minutes deceptively edited an interview with then Democratic Presidential hopeful Kamala Harris for $16m. And also ahead of the merger announced the cancellation of the Late Show with Stephen Colbert,<\/a> who only days before called the settlement \u201ca big fat bribe\u201d.<\/p>\n