Byron Allen has submitted a bid on behalf of Allen Media Group to buy Paramount Global for $14.3 billion. In reality, the overall deal would be worth around $30 billion, considering Allen Media Group would also assume roughly $15 billion in debt.
There has been a good deal of speculation surrounding the future of Paramount Global recently. In particular, recent reports have suggested that both Skydance Media and Warner Bros. Discovery have been considering making an offer for, or a deal with, Paramount.
However, there hadn’t been anything formally announced up until now. According to a statement provided by Allen Media Group To Bloomberg News, Allen has made an offer to buy Paramount Global. “This $30 billion offer, which includes debt and equity, is the best solution for all of the Paramount Global shareholders, and the bid should be taken seriously and pursued,” the statement said.
According to the same report, and citing unnamed sources, Allen plans to keep hold of the TV channels and the Paramount+ streaming service, all of which would then be operated on a more cost-efficient basis. Allen Media Group already owns a number of local TV stations, in addition to Local Now, TheGrio, and The Weather Channel.
Some of the remaining assets, including Paramount Pictures, as well as some intellectual property and real estate, would reportedly be sold off.
This is not the first time that Allen has made a play for a Paramount Global asset. Last year, Allen made an offer to buy BET Networks and VH1 from Paramount. Allen also previously made a $10 billion bid to buy ABC, FX and National Geographic from The Walt Disney Company.
Whether or not this latest offer is taken seriously remains to be seen. Paramount has been extremely quiet on the rumors and speculations so far, but with a formal offer having now been publicly confirmed, it will be interesting to see if that forces Paramount to be more vocal on the situation in the future.
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