Sony Pictures Entertainment and Apollo Global Management have officially put in a bid for Paramount Global, as competition for the storied film and TV company continues to heat up.
Sony and Apollo submitted their $26-billion all-cash offer this week, according to a person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to comment.
Under the terms of the proposed deal, Sony would take a majority shareholder role in the company, with Apollo as a minority shareholder. The joint bid is a nonbinding expression of interest.
The companies do not see regulatory approval as a hurdle to the deal, the person said, even though it would lead to the combination of two of Hollywood’s major movie studios.
The bid comes as Paramount nears the end of a 30-day exclusive negotiating period on Friday with tech scion David Ellison’s Skydance Media, which recently sweetened its takeover offer.
On Monday, Paramount ousted chief executive Bob Bakish, who was known to have opposed the Skydance proposal, irking controlling shareholder Shari Redstone.
The company said three of its top entertainment executives would jointly run the firm: Paramount Pictures CEO Brian Robbins; CBS CEO George Cheeks; and Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios chief Chris McCarthy.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Source Agencies
