Feed: Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics
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Title: Warner Bros. Discovery will split into two media giants

Date: Mon, 09 Jun 2025 14:45:54 +0000
Link: https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/warner...

Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) has announced that it will be splitting up into
two separate media companies. The new structure will see one entity retain
Warner Bros. film, television and game studios, along with New Line Cinema,
DC Studios, HBO and HBO Max, while the other will hold the companyΓÇÖs full
portfolio of live cable channels, which includes many household names like
CNN, HGTV, Cartoon Network, Discovery, TCL and others.

In a shareholder deck, WBD refers to these two entities as ΓÇ£WBD Global
NetworksΓÇ¥ and ΓÇ£WBD Streaming & Studios,ΓÇ¥ and highlights the strengths
of each portfolio. The company points out that the newly minted entities
would each produce healthy free cash flow and intends for each to be listed
as publicly traded companies. This comes just three years after the original
merger between WarnerMedia and Discovery.

David Zaslav, the current CEO and president of WBD, will serve as president
and CEO of Streaming & Studios. Gunnar Wiedenfels, currently CFO of WBD, will
serve as president and CEO of Global Networks. Both remain in their current
roles until the separation is complete.

ΓÇ£The cultural significance of this great company and the impactful stories
it has brought to life for more than a century have touched countless people
all over the world. ItΓÇÖs a treasured legacy we will proudly continue in
this next chapter of our celebrated history,ΓÇ¥ said Zaslav in a statement.
ΓÇ£By operating as two distinct and optimized companies in the future, we are
empowering these iconic brands with the sharper focus and strategic
flexibility they need to compete most effectively in todayΓÇÖs evolving media
landscape.ΓÇ¥

In an investor presentation, WBD announced it will be taking a $17.5 billion
loan from J.P. Morgan to assist in a cash tender and consent solicitation for
all of its approximately$35.5 billion in outstanding bonds. This means it
will be buying back some of the bonds while also asking bondholders to loosen
their terms, and will offer cash incentives to those who agree to sell or
restructure. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the majority of the total
debt will be held by Global Networks, while ΓÇ£a not-insignificant portionΓÇ¥
will remain with Streaming & Studios. The exact breakdown of the debt at each
entity remains to be seen, pending the outcome of the companies' debt
restructuring.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at
https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/warner...
two-media-giants-144553585.html?src=rss

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