Warner Bruce Discovery (WBD) has announced that it will be divided into two separate media companies. This new structure will maintain an entity Warner Bruce Film, Television and Game Studios, as well as New Line Cinema, DC Studios, HBO and HBO Max, while the other will have a full portfolio of the cable channels, which includes CNN, Homes, and other names.
In the shareholder deck, the WBD has interpreted these two entities as “WBD Global Networks” and “WBD Streaming and Studios” and highlighted the power of each portfolio. The company said that each of the new mint companies will produce a healthy free cash flow and plans to be listed as publicly traded companies. It comes only three years after the actual integration between war and discovery.
The current WBD CEO and President David Zaslav will serve as the President and CEO of Streaming and Studios. Gannar Vidnifillus, who is currently the WBD’s CFO, will serve as the President and CEO of the World Networks. Until the separation is completed, the two remain in their current role.
“The cultural importance of this great company and the effective stories that have been brought to life for more than a century have touched countless people all over the world,” Zuslav said in a statement. “By working as two separate and better companies in the future, we are empowering famous brands with sharp focus and strategic flexibility that they need to compete the most effectively in today’s evolutionary media landscape.”
In an investor’s offer, the WBD announced that it would borrow $ 17.5 billion from JP Morgan to assist in the cash tender and consent for its nearly $ 35.5 billion residual bonds. This means that it will buy some of the bonds back to the bonds, while also asking the bond holders to loose their terms, and will offer cash incentives to those who are willing to sell or reorganize. According to Hollywood reporterThe majority of the total debt will be kept to the global networks, while the “extraordinary part” will remain with streaming and studios. Each company has the exact debt defects, as a result of the reorganization of companies’ loan.
