Warner Bros. Discovery Opens Upfront, Says Paramount Deal Remains on Track for September Close

Warner Bros. Discovery co-heads of sales Ryan Gould and Robert “Bobby” Voltaggio kicked off the company’s upfront on Wednesday by directly addressing the looming $110 billion Paramount acquisition. “Before we go on, we do want to address the Ellison – I mean, the elephant in the room,” Gould said, alluding to Paramount CEO David Ellison and perhaps his father Oracle billionaire Larry Ellison.

He continued, “Listen, we don’t deflect. That’s not who we are. Everyone here knows that there’s change ahead, and that there’s change in our company. ” Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery have said the deal is on track to close by September.

It has already been approved by a number of regulatory agencies as well as Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders. Several state attorneys general have been reviewing the Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery transaction and considering legal action.

A petition against the deal has drawn thousands of signatures from those working in the entertainment creative community. “We’re well aware that your business is changing, too,” Voltaggio said. “But we believe that success is a team effort.

As Gould mentioned, the core of Warner Bros. Discovery has been through a number of mergers in recent years. Paramount would be its fourth corporate owner in eight years. Time Warner was sold to AT&T in an $85 billion combination proposed in 2016.

U.S. government. WarnerMedia was merged with Discovery Communications in a $43 billion deal that closed in 2022.

HBO Max launched in 2020. The upfront positioning of the Warner assets has evolved over those years with the rise of streaming flagship HBO Max enabling advertising to be placed in front of Warner Bros. films and HBO series.

While those brand elements are limited, the presence of ads was long unthinkable for the former premium cable network. Even after launching HBO Max in 2020, WarnerMedia took a cautious approach to promoting HBO and Warner Bros. brands at the upfront.

By 2026, Warner Bros. and HBO brands were dominant themes in the Warner Bros. Discovery upfront pitch. Deadline reported these details from the Wednesday presentation.