Bronfman wants Paramount to team up with big tech for streaming business – report

Edgar Bronfman Jr. wants Paramount Global (NASDAQ:PARA) to partner with a technology company like Amazon.com (AMZN) or Apple (AAPL) to improve its streaming business if his offer is chosen as the winning bid over Skydance Media.

Bronfman believes that Paramount should have more specific skills for its streaming services, such as customer acquisition and ad sales, according to a Bloomberg report on Saturday, which cited people familiar with the matter. Bronfman submitted a $6 billion offer for National Amusements last week and is still working on getting the final signatures for his financing package, though he has all the investors in place.

Both Bronfman and Skydance have offered Paramount Chair Shari Redstone to remain on the board if their offer is accepted, according to the report. Bronfman would become CEO if he wins, and would let the current trio of Paramount co-CEOs remain at the company, which is home to CBS, MTV, Nickelodeon and other media businesses.

The Paramount (PARA) special committee will decide by Aug. 28 if Bronfman’s bid is superior and if it does, Skydance will have four business days to match it.

The latest update comes after CNBC reported on Friday that Bronfman is open to having RedStone stay involved with Paramount (PARA) if the entertainment company decides his bid is superior to Skydance.

Both CNBC and Bloomberg reported that Bronfman will bring on former AOL executive Jon Miller. Miller is a longtime Redstone ally and is a partner in her capital venture firm, Advancit. Media reports on Thursday indicated that Skydance is accusing Paramount (PARA) of breaching the terms of its deal by extending the time it has to engage with other bidders.