Paramount-WBD lawsuit heads for tragic ending
PSKY•Delay is costly as the industry continues to weaken
Whatever happens, any delay is costly. If Paramount does not close the deal before October, it will have to pay $650 million in quarterly fees until the union is sealed. The company, for its part, said the case is “wrong on both the facts and the law.” Investors seem unmoved: Warner’s stock price rose slightly on Monday.
Leave all that aside for the moment, though. Box-office ticket sales have yet to recover from the pandemic, with 2025’s haul coming in 25% below 2019’s, according to Box Office Mojo. Theater operators Cinemark CNK.N, Marcus MCS.N and AMC Entertainment AMC.N have seen their stocks fall 14%, 31% and 95%, respectively, since the end of that pre-Covid year. Meanwhile, cable television subscriptions are in free-fall as streamers like Amazon.com AMZN.O, Apple AAPL.O and Netflix dominate NFLX.O.
The industries that the plaintiff states identify are, indeed, in trouble. That’s because traditional media is coming unglued. This deal may not help: despite a promise to release 30 films in theaters per year, Paramount’s groaning prospective debt pile has drawn a negative outlook from ratings agency S&P Global. Whether it happens or not, though, Hollywood’s old world is fading.
