The idea is that this is a political deal, not a business deal - by buying WBD, the Ellisons add CNN to a portfolio that already includes CBS and TikTok, and shaping coverage matters more to them than the stock price.
I think this was actually on the table and rejected. Which is why the "control the narrative" argument is fishy, or at least missing something. And now having just defended Oracle I have to go take a shower.
I assume OP is talking about an ideological motive to take over the media industry and pivot it in a rightward direction. That’s certainly what happened with CBS News, I think it’s fair to speculate about CNN too.
No idea why OP alluded to it rather than just said it though.
Absolutely. But it’s still relevant because depending on your goal (and your resources) a bad deal that burns cash might still be a positive outcome.
Not dissimilar from Musk buying Twitter, objectively he overpaid by a ton for a business that wasn’t thriving. But I think time has shown that his purchase has paid political and ideological dividends. Which might be worth the money to him.
That's what a poor person would say. Fox news managed to get Donald Trump elected, whose net worth has gone up by billions.
Also, it's not real money, it's debt equity. Equity transfers are just rich people toys. They move the actual cost into the entity they purchase, and if it fails, whatever, it didn't cost them anything.
The idea is that this is a political deal, not a business deal - by buying WBD, the Ellisons add CNN to a portfolio that already includes CBS and TikTok, and shaping coverage matters more to them than the stock price.
If that's the case, shouldn't they have been able to work out a much cheaper deal with Netflix where they get CNN and Netflix everything else?
Probably hard to cut a deal like this with someone you are actively engaged in a hostile bidding war with.
I think this was actually on the table and rejected. Which is why the "control the narrative" argument is fishy, or at least missing something. And now having just defended Oracle I have to go take a shower.
I assume OP is talking about an ideological motive to take over the media industry and pivot it in a rightward direction. That’s certainly what happened with CBS News, I think it’s fair to speculate about CNN too.
No idea why OP alluded to it rather than just said it though.
Even if that is indeed the motive, the article is useful in showing how from a financial perspective this is bad deal for Paramount.
Absolutely. But it’s still relevant because depending on your goal (and your resources) a bad deal that burns cash might still be a positive outcome.
Not dissimilar from Musk buying Twitter, objectively he overpaid by a ton for a business that wasn’t thriving. But I think time has shown that his purchase has paid political and ideological dividends. Which might be worth the money to him.
didn’t think I had to actually explain it :)
Its a cynical media control strategy to prevent taxes on the rich.
This doesn’t make sense. Surely paying taxes would be cheaper than buying Warner Bros?
That's what a poor person would say. Fox news managed to get Donald Trump elected, whose net worth has gone up by billions.
Also, it's not real money, it's debt equity. Equity transfers are just rich people toys. They move the actual cost into the entity they purchase, and if it fails, whatever, it didn't cost them anything.
He's probably talking about this: https://www.972mag.com/ellisons-paramount-tiktok-israel-medi...
Indeed. I have tried to say it more bluntly, Galloway is pro-Israel and vehemently so.