Paramount-Skydance Merger Approved by FCC, Clearing Way for $8 Billion Deal Close
The Federal Communications Commission has cleared the way for David Ellison’s Skydance to acquire Paramount Global.
The federal agency, led by Brendan Carr, said on Thursday that it approved the transfer of Paramount’s broadcast licenses to Skydance, the last hurdle in the review of the $8 billion deal.
With the FCC approving the transfer, Skydance will be able to complete its acquisition of Paramount in short order, transforming the media landscape as Ellison takes charge of the owner of CBS, the Paramount film studio, Paramount+ and cable channels like MTV, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon.
Skydance had previously committed to eliminating all diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives (DEI) at the company, and to hire an ombudsman at CBS News to monitor for media bias.
The Skydance deal has been a year in the making, with Skydance and its partner RedBird Capital beating out other potential suitors last year for the asset, which was controlled by Shari Redstone and her family’s National Amusements holding company. Ellison will become CEO of the combined company, with former NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell to become its president.
The FCC approval also comes just a few weeks after Paramount settled a lawsuit brought against it by President Donald Trump, over an interview the CBS News show 60 Minutes conducted with former Vice President Kamala Harris last year.
The lawsuit was settled for $16 million, though Trump later told reporters it also included free advertising connected to issues of importance to him. Paramount denied any agreement for commercials.
The settlement led to resentment, anger and disgust inside CBS News, where staff were frustrated that a deal was cut over a lawsuit that they viewed as baseless, though Paramount refused to apologize over the interview and edits in question.
