Paramount shares jump more than 10% as Sony, Apollo discuss joint buyout bid
NY Post
Shares of Paramount Global rose more than 10% on Friday, on news Sony Pictures Entertainment and Apollo Global Management were discussing a joint bid to acquire the media company.
Paramount is currently engaged in exclusive deal talks with Skydance Media, an independent studio led by David Ellison, though some investors have urged Paramount to explore other options.
Private equity firm Apollo had earlier made a $26 billion bid for the company, and a separate $11 billion offer for Paramount’s film studio.
Its joint bid with Sony, which is still being structured, would offer cash for all outstanding Paramount Global shares and take the company private, a source told Reuters on Thursday.
Sony would hold a majority stake in the joint venture and operate the media company, and its library of films, including blockbusters franchises like as “Star Trek,” “Mission: Impossible” and “Indiana Jones,” and television characters like SpongeBob SquarePants, according to the source.
Apollo would likely assume control of the CBS broadcast network and its local television stations.
