Sony and Apollo Global Management have sent an offer letter to Paramount Global’s board of directors making an $26 billion all cash offer for Paramount Global, according to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported the letter.
Skydance has been exclusively negotiating a merger with Paramount but that exclusive negotiating window ends on Friday, May 3. The company's largest shareholder, Shari Redstone, has supported the merger but the board has not approved the deal and other shareholders have opposed it.
Reports had previously indicated that Sony would be involved in a bid for Paramount. Apollo had also previously considered acquiring Paramount for $26 billion, including debt. Other suitors have included Allen Media Group in a $30 billion deal including debt, as well as Warner Bros. Discovery.
"Under the terms of the new offer, Sony would be the significant majority shareholder with Apollo taking a minority stake and ceding operational control," the Wall Street Journal reported.
The Sony/Apollo offer comes after weeks of reports about the imminent sale of Paramount that led to the departure of longtime CEO Bob Bakish on Monday April 29 and the departure of four board members. Bakish was said to have been unenthusiastic about the merger with Skydance.
