Warner Bros. Discovery reportedly aims to announce its future plans by Christmas; Formula One executives discuss the Apple streaming deal; and Sinclair CEO Chris Ripley outlines antitrust concerns in the Disney-YouTube TV dispute. Plus news on Paramount and Professional Bull Riders, FanDuel Sports Network, Kris Budden and NBA regional simulcasts.
Warner Bros. Discovery reportedly aims to announce future plans by Christmas
Warner Bros. Discovery plans to announce its future intentions by Christmas, with those options including a potential sale of all or part of the company, Alex Sherman of CNBC reported Wednesday. WBD received “unsolicited interest from multiple parties” for both the entire company and the post-spin Warner Bros. that will contain streaming and studio assets. Should the spin transaction take place, Discovery Global would hold an Upfront in May that would also reportedly include Warner Bros. under an advertising deal.
Paramount is said to have made a bid of $23.50/share to acquire the entirety of WBD, something it believes to be “in the best interest of shareholders.” The media conglomerate has reportedly sent several letters to WBD explaining the offer, which David Faber of CNBC reported contained 80% cash and 20% equity.
Sherman added that WBD asked Paramount to sign a non-disclosure agreement preventing it from presenting an offer directly to shareholders in a hostile bid. In return, Paramount would gain access to some data. Paramount has yet to sign the NDA in order to keep its options open, according to a person cited in the report.
Comcast and Netflix have reportedly been interested in acquiring the future Warner Bros. studio and streaming business, which is not expected to contain the majority of existing WBD debt. Discovery Global is going to hold a 20% stake in the business, something that future CEO Gunnar Wiedenfels said the company could consider selling before the spin transaction is complete.
Chang discusses F1, Apple deal
As Formula One prepares to leave linear television in a new five-year media rights deal with Apple next year, the president of its parent company said Wednesday that it is “antiquated” to define reach in the context of traditional television broadcast windows. Liberty Media president/CEO Derek Chang said in an earnings call that the traditional definition of reach fails to account for the ways a company like Apple “can touch many, many different demographics in many different ways.”
Chang also discussed the long-term length of the five-year contract and the “years of investment” that Apple could bring to the table. Chang: “When you’re thinking about a company like Apple and the way that they invest behind a product, it’s not like the product in the fifth year is going to look much different, I guarantee you, than what you see in the first year. … I think we’ll see the fruits of this over the next several years.”
Formula One president/CEO Stefano Domenicali said the company believes that the “minor” risks of the deal pale in comparison to the “huge” opportunities, specifically noting that Apple has a reputation for being “very progressive in proposing new things” that will help to make the sport more relevant.
Domenicali and Chang also discussed whether the Apple deal, which covers only the United States, could extend into other global markets, saying that the company will continue to take a market-by-market approach rather than strike a single global deal for its rights.
Ripley: Impact of Disney, YouTube TV dispute on local broadcasters is antitrust issue
Sinclair Broadcast Group CEO Chris Ripley told investors on a quarterly earnings call Wednesday that the ongoing impasse between Disney and YouTube TV represents an antitrust issue for local station owners. All ABC affiliates, including the 40 that are owned by Sinclair, are currently blacked out on YouTube TV.
It would seem to be Disney’s decision to keep its programming off of YouTube TV during the impasse, with Google this week requesting that the company make its channels available as negotiations continue. “Disney, ABC and other networks should not be able to dictate to us whether we can or cannot distribute content to YouTube TV or even Hulu and Fubo, which coincidentally are now also owned by Disney,” Ripley said.
Ripley added that he has spoken with antitrust regulators and the SEC, and noted that the FCC earlier this year “opened an investigation into hurtful network affiliation practices.”
This is not the first time that Sinclair has been at odds with Disney just this fall, as the company was one of the two station owners who briefly pulled ABC’s late night talk show “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” in September.
Plus: Paramount-PBR, FDSN, Kris Budden, NBA regional simulcasts
- Paramount has reached a five-year media rights deal with Professional Bull Riders to become the streaming home of the “Unleash The Beast” tour starting in December. This is the third deal TKO Group Holdings has inked with Skydance Media-owned Paramount since the latter was formed out of a merger in August. Paramount-owned CBS has long carried PBR events.
- The Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Royals and Milwaukee Brewers have extended their media rights agreements with Main Street Sports Group, it was announced on Wednesday. All three teams will remain on FanDuel Sports Network RSNs for the 2026 season, the final deal under the current MLB-MLBPA collective bargaining agreement.
- ESPN reporter Kris Budden made her debut as the network’s lead men’s college basketball sideline reporter for ESPN Tuesday night. Budden, who has been covering various sports at ESPN for the last decade, will spend the season primarily working with play-by-play announcer Dan Shulman and analyst Jay Bilas on Saturday prime time broadcasts.
- The Atlanta Hawks have partnered with Gray Media’s WANF-TV, Peachtree Sports Network and FanDuel Sports Network to simulcast 11 games for free on over-the-air television across six locales in Georgia. In addition, the Charlotte Hornets will be working with Cox-owned WSOC-TV (Ch. 9 and 64) and Gray to simulcast 12 games throughout the year.
