WarnerMedia and Discovery finalise merger

Bengaluru — AT&T’s WarnerMedia unit and Discovery have completed their merger, the companies said on Friday.

The combined company, Warner Bros Discovery, will start trading on the Nasdaq on Monday under the ticker symbol “WBD”.

In May 2021 the companies set out to merge and become a stand-alone media business, with AT&T aiming to focus more on its wireless ambitions and Discovery looking to beef up its content library.

“With the close of this transaction, we expect to invest at record levels in our growth areas of 5G and fibre, where we have strong momentum,” AT&T CEO John Stankey said in a statement.

Warner Bros Discovery’s portfolio includes Discovery Channel, Warner Bros Entertainment, CNN, HBO, Cartoon Network; streaming services Discovery+ and HBO Max; and franchises such as Batman and Harry Potter.

A top priority for David Zaslav, the long-time Discovery veteran leading the combined entity, is to make streaming video as profitable as the old TV business, analysts said.

Discovery On Thursday announced the executive team to lead the new Warner Bros Discovery (WBD), leaning heavily on a trusted group of lieutenants, many of who have worked with its CEO since his days at NBC.

Nine high-level WarnerMedia executives, including CEO Jason Kilar and Studios and Network chief Ann Sarnoff, announced their exits ahead of the formation of the combined company this week.

Reuters