CBS and Viacom Strike Deal for Long-Thwarted Merger
CBS and Viacom Strike Deal for Long-Thwarted Merger
Companies seek greater scale to survive in a media landscape dominated by major tech companies and bulked-up rivals
CBS and Viacom were split into separate companies in 2006. PHOTO: LUCAS JACKSON/REUTERS
By
Benjamin Mullin and
Cara Lombardo
Updated Aug. 13, 2019 2:11 pm ET
CBS Corp. CBS.A 1.78% and Viacom Inc. VIA -8.81% agreed to merge, a deal the media companies hope will put them on stronger footing to compete with larger rivals in a business buffeted by cable TV cord-cutting and increasingly dominated by streaming.
The all-stock deal, if completed, will reunite the media empire of mogul Sumner Redstone, who had split up CBS and Viacom in 2006. It will create a major entertainment player valued at roughly $30 billion, combining Viacom properties such as MTV, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central and the Paramount film and TV studio with CBS’s broadcast network and Showtime premium network.
Larger, to a PointA combined CBS and Viacom will still besmaller than other media giants.Market capitalization*Source: FactSet*As of August 12
$251.9 billion244.5193136.129.721.715AT&TDisneyComcastNetflixCBS+ViacomFoxDiscovery
The companies are betting now that merging back together will help them battle titans likeWalt Disney Co. , Comcast Corp. , AT&T Inc. and Netflix Inc. and remain relevant as consumers sign up for streaming video services and pay TV distributors look to cut the fees they pay to programmers.
Shari Redstone, Mr. Redstone’s daughter and vice chairman of both companies, is expected to become chairman of the board of the combined company, people close to the discussions said. The deal would cement Ms. Redstone’s status as a powerful media mogul.
She controls both CBS and Viacom along with her father, through their family holding company National Amusements Inc.
Bob Bakish, currently the chief executive of Viacom, would become CEO of the combined entity, while CBS Acting Chief Executive Joe Ianniello would run CBS-branded assets, the people said.
Under the deal, Viacom shareholders will receive 0.59625 CBS shares for each share they own. The company will be named ViacomCBS.
The deal values Viacom slightly below its market capitalization, which was around $12 billion on Aug 9. It has been the weaker of the two media companies over the past several years, and its stock had risen this year, in part on speculation of a CBS deal.
Write to Benjamin Mullin at Benjamin.Mullin@wsj.com and Cara Lombardo at cara.lombardo@wsj.com
CBS and Viacom Strike Deal for Long-Thwarted Merger
Companies seek greater scale to survive in a media landscape dominated by major tech companies and bulked-up rivals
CBS and Viacom were split into separate companies in 2006. PHOTO: LUCAS JACKSON/REUTERS
By
Benjamin Mullin and
Cara Lombardo
Updated Aug. 13, 2019 2:11 pm ET
CBS Corp. CBS.A 1.78% and Viacom Inc. VIA -8.81% agreed to merge, a deal the media companies hope will put them on stronger footing to compete with larger rivals in a business buffeted by cable TV cord-cutting and increasingly dominated by streaming.
The all-stock deal, if completed, will reunite the media empire of mogul Sumner Redstone, who had split up CBS and Viacom in 2006. It will create a major entertainment player valued at roughly $30 billion, combining Viacom properties such as MTV, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central and the Paramount film and TV studio with CBS’s broadcast network and Showtime premium network.
Larger, to a PointA combined CBS and Viacom will still besmaller than other media giants.Market capitalization*Source: FactSet*As of August 12
$251.9 billion244.5193136.129.721.715AT&TDisneyComcastNetflixCBS+ViacomFoxDiscovery
The companies are betting now that merging back together will help them battle titans likeWalt Disney Co. , Comcast Corp. , AT&T Inc. and Netflix Inc. and remain relevant as consumers sign up for streaming video services and pay TV distributors look to cut the fees they pay to programmers.
Shari Redstone, Mr. Redstone’s daughter and vice chairman of both companies, is expected to become chairman of the board of the combined company, people close to the discussions said. The deal would cement Ms. Redstone’s status as a powerful media mogul.
She controls both CBS and Viacom along with her father, through their family holding company National Amusements Inc.
Bob Bakish, currently the chief executive of Viacom, would become CEO of the combined entity, while CBS Acting Chief Executive Joe Ianniello would run CBS-branded assets, the people said.
Under the deal, Viacom shareholders will receive 0.59625 CBS shares for each share they own. The company will be named ViacomCBS.
The deal values Viacom slightly below its market capitalization, which was around $12 billion on Aug 9. It has been the weaker of the two media companies over the past several years, and its stock had risen this year, in part on speculation of a CBS deal.
Write to Benjamin Mullin at Benjamin.Mullin@wsj.com and Cara Lombardo at cara.lombardo@wsj.com
Damn. If this was about disney this thread would be 20+ pgs
