Byron Allen, founder, chairman and CEO of Allen Media Group, speaks on the Milken Institute International Convention in Beverly Hills, California, on Could 2, 2022.
Patrick T. Fallon | AFP | Getty Pictures
Byron Allen, the media mogul, affords $14 billion Massive worldadvised CNBC on Wednesday that he has the cash to finance a deal, regardless of skepticism about making offers.
“Now we have greater than sufficient capital at our disposal. The actual problem is the understanding {that a} deal will occur,” mentioned Allen.
“This deal lives or dies sooner or later [Federal Communications Commission],” he added.
Allen, the founder and CEO of a media group that owns dozens of tv networks within the U.S., supplied $30 billion for all of Paramount’s excellent shares, together with debt and fairness.
Allen Media Group mentioned in a press release that the supply “is the very best resolution for all shareholders of Paramount International, and the supply ought to be taken significantly and pursued.”
Allen has an extended historical past of constructing affords on main media belongings. However bidding doesn’t imply shopping for.
His latest media buyout affords haven’t generated any income. The Wall Avenue Journal reported Wednesday that Allen supplied $18.5 billion for Paramount final 12 months however was rejected.
Allen advised CNBC that he has obtained no response from Paramount on his newest supply.
Shari Redstone, who controls Paramount via her firm Nationwide Amusements, has been open to creating offers in latest months in an effort to merge or promote the corporate that’s dwelling to manufacturers together with CBS, Showtime, Nickelodeon and the eponymous movie studio .
CNBC reported final week that David Ellison’s Skydance Media and its backers had been exploring a deal to take Paramount Photos or the whole media firm personal.
In December, CNBC additionally reported that Paramount had begun preliminary talks Warner Bros. Discovery to merge the 2 media giants in a deal that might have confronted regulatory hurdles.
Allen’s bid for Paramount is probably the most bold of the offers the media mogul has tried to make. Listed below are a few of his latest deal makes an attempt:
- In December, Allen renewed an effort to purchase Black Leisure Tv and Paramount-owned VH1 for a complete of $3.5 billion.
- In November, Bloomberg reported that he was contemplating a bid to purchase tv stations from E. W. Scripps.
- In September, Allen made a bid to purchase ABC and a number of other different networks Disney for $10 billion after Disney CEO Bob Iger opened the door to the sale of the corporate’s linear TV belongings.
- In 2022, he explored a bid to purchase the Washington Commanders of the Nationwide Soccer League.
- In March 2020, he supplied $8.5 billion to purchase the proprietor of tv stations Label.
Allen advised CNBC by cellphone Wednesday that he misplaced out on a number of offers as a result of the proprietor modified course as a result of he needed to promote. He highlighted his 2018 acquisition of The Climate Channel for a reported $300 million and broadly defended his observe file, calling on baseball Corridor of Famer Babe Ruth.
“Let’s speak about Babe Ruth. Will he go down as one of many biggest baseball gamers of all time? And he struck out half the time,” Allen mentioned. In actuality, Ruth struck out 1,300 instances in 8,399 at bats – a strikeout charge of 15%.
Allen’s bids for linear TV belongings come at a time when the media panorama is shifting from conventional TV to streaming. Practically all main media corporations have launched providers to compete with the streaming big Netflix.
Paramount mentioned in its third-quarter earnings report that its streaming platform, Paramount+, elevated its subscriber base to 63 million. Nevertheless, Paramount’s direct-to-consumer merchandise have did not generate earnings like Netflix. The division reported an adjusted lack of $238 million for the third quarter.
Paramount will report fourth-quarter earnings on February 28.
Allen advised CNBC that he desires to purchase Paramount for its linear networks, which he mentioned is probably the most difficult a part of the enterprise.
“These are nonetheless nice companies if you know the way to handle them proper,” Allen says.
Paramount shares rose about 8% on Wednesday afternoon and have risen greater than 35% up to now three months as discuss of a deal intensified. Nevertheless, the inventory is down greater than 40% from its 52-week excessive of $25.93 per share reached in February 2023.
— CNBC’s Alex Sherman and Julia Boorstin contributed to this report.
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