CNBCReports allegeWarner Bros. Discovery is in talks with Paramount to discuss a possible business merger.
However, the two sides have only held preliminary discussions and have not reached any agreement, so there is a possibility of a breakdown.
Warner Bros. Exploration CEO David Zaslav is highly interested in a merger with Paramount, potentially strengthening its film and television content portfolio and competing with Netflix, Apple, Amazon, and Disney. Paramount, on the other hand, is also open to a strategic alliance, a shift to other media companies, or even a sale to private equity or other technology companies.
Warner Bros. Discovery's Max service currently has approximately 9500 million subscribers worldwide, while Paramount's Paramount+ has 6300 million. A merger of the two services would bring their subscriber base to over 9 million. However, with accumulated debt of $430 billion and $140 billion, respectively, at the end of September, even a merger would likely still pose significant debt challenges.
