A couple of years back David Zaslav, Warner Brothers Discovery CEO looked like the most accomplished and adept dealmaker in the streaming video content business. Convincing AT&T management to part with HBO and the rest of its stakes in the media content business looked like it took some serious work on Zaslav's part.
But now, a few years into Zaslav's management of these same businesses, as someone who subscribes to several streamers including Max, and Paramount Plus, and someone who has considered trading call options on the public players in this business, I look at the HBO buy as more a win for AT&T management than a win requiring much effort from Zaslav.
Content creation for streamers is a heavily cash dependent business. Amalgamating businesses into a composite now called Warner Brothers Discovery required incurring a lot of debt. End result? What I have called a very much less than satisfactory customer experience (CX) and a too risky bet as far as my options trading interest is concerned.
Shari Redstone, who owns National Amusements and, therefore, controls "media group Paramount", on the other hand, looks like a truly savvy leader and negotiator. I am eager to see how this news David Ellison's Skydance would like to "take control of Paramount Global". The 15% rise in share price for Paramount yesterday spells out Wall Street enthusiasm for the deal.
#optionstrading #paramountplus #streamingbusiness #skydance #nationalamusements
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