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CNBC: WBD next to spin cable assets

Speculation---and that's all it is---in a Hollywood Reporter piece that suggests the split could see the Discovery name go with the cable assets as the studio and streaming double-down on the equity in the Warner Bros and HBO brands.

I was joking this morning about HBOWarner as a brand name, but stranger stuff has happened.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

Returning the HBO to Max Is Latest Sign of Potential Warner Bros. Discovery Split

Married in 2022, divorced in 2025?
www.hollywoodreporter.com www.hollywoodreporter.com
 
michael hagerty said:
Speculation---and that's all it is---in a Hollywood Reporter piece that suggests the split could see the Discovery name go with the cable assets as the studio and streaming double-down on the equity in the Warner Bros and HBO brands.

I was joking this morning about HBOWarner as a brand name, but stranger stuff has happened.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

Returning the HBO to Max Is Latest Sign of Potential Warner Bros. Discovery Split

Married in 2022, divorced in 2025?
www.hollywoodreporter.com www.hollywoodreporter.com
Click to expand...
It might just stay the same too. I don't think most consumers care about their name, just what's on there. Starz would have changed their name several times like WBD is doing if they knew they could unlock riches with a "perfect" name change. Disney Plus is a bad name I think based on its brand, but still has a lot of subscribers.
 
tall_guy1 said:
It might just stay the same too. I don't think most consumers care about their name, just what's on there.
Click to expand...

You do remember that all this is coming up in stories tied to today’s announcement that Max is going back to HBO Max, right?

tall_guy1 said:
Starz would have changed their name several times like WBD is doing if they knew they could unlock riches with a "perfect" name change.
Click to expand...

Starz is like the 16th biggest streamer. It would take more than a name change.
 
michael hagerty said:
You do remember that all this is coming up in stories tied to today’s announcement that Max is going back to HBO Max, right?



Starz is like the 16th biggest streamer. It would take more than a name change.
Click to expand...
I don't think too many people will subscribe back just because they call themselves HBO Max or Max. I think people just care about the shows on there if they're any good.
 
tall_guy1 said:
I don't think too many people will subscribe back just because they call themselves HBO Max or Max. I think people just care about the shows on there if they're any good.
Click to expand...
People want quality content. That is what HBO is good at. Name recognition means HBO good Discovery bad.
 
Time Warner/WarnerMedia/WBD I've just thought feels like more than a lot of companies in the last decade feels like watching a company with a "roof on fire." They are scrambling to put it out any way possible. From two different mergers, programming/streaming service changes, and a bunch of different program strategies, this company feels different than the rest. I know Paramount/Viacom and others have it too, but they seem to kind of just sit there. TBS and TNT rebranded dramatically in 2016 and 2020 too. This was Lost Resort, a reality show that totally was of the course for TBS in 2020. I wonder how hectic it is inside those offices?

 
deadline.com

S&P Downgrades Warner Bros. Discovery To Junk Status On “Weak Credit Metrics” That Would Get Worse If Company Splits

S&P downgraded Warner Bros. Discovery to junk status amid revenue and cash flow declines at linear TV. networks. It said a split in two wouldn't help.
deadline.com deadline.com

Here is an update and this is one factor that lead to the spinoff talks within WB.

S&P downgraded Warner Bros. Discovery to BB+ amid continued revenue and cash flow declines at its linear TV operations. Anything BB+ and below is junk bond status for the giant ratings agency.

It reaffirmed its “negative” outlook. It also said that, from a credit perspective, it’s not a fan of a possible WBD split, teased by CEO David Zaslav last week after an internal reorganization split the company into two divisions (Streaming & Studios and Global Linear Networks) this month. Separation would be “a credit negative,” S&P said.

Linear woes saw S&P lower its forecast for EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) for 2025 and 2026 to about $9 billion for the next three years. That translates into expected leverage of 4.3x at the end of 2025 and 3.9x in 2026, heading in the right direction but still significantly above the agency’s 3.5x leverage threshold for the rating. S&P sees leverage remaining above 3.5x until 2027. Leverage is a ratio indicating the amount of debt compared to assets or equity.
Click to expand...
 
Y2kTheNewOldies said:
deadline.com

S&P Downgrades Warner Bros. Discovery To Junk Status On “Weak Credit Metrics” That Would Get Worse If Company Splits

S&P downgraded Warner Bros. Discovery to junk status amid revenue and cash flow declines at linear TV. networks. It said a split in two wouldn't help.
deadline.com deadline.com

Here is an update and this is one factor that lead to the spinoff talks within WB.
Click to expand...
It might have made sense for Discovery and just HBO to merge back when the Time Warner assets were separated perhaps.
 
And now we know company names and top management:

"Warner Bros. will include the Warners film and TV studios, DC Studios, HBO and HBO Max, and the TCM cable channel;

Discovery will include the former Discovery and Turner linear channels, including TNT, TBS, CNN, Cartoon Network, Discovery, Food Network, and HGTV. It will also include the company’s international TV channels, and the Discovery+ streaming service."
Click to expand...

www.hollywoodreporter.com

Warner Bros. Discovery’s Post-Split Companies Will Be Warner Bros. and Discovery

The post-split companies also set their senior leadership teams.
www.hollywoodreporter.com www.hollywoodreporter.com
 
www.broadbandtvnews.com

The merger that wasn’t: John Malone, Rupert Murdoch, and the Fox-Warner talks

In the summer of 2024, two media veterans—John Malone, the so-called “cable cowboy,” and Rupert Murdoch, the architect of modern media empires—engaged in what would become one of the most intriguin…
www.broadbandtvnews.com www.broadbandtvnews.com
www.ft.com

John Malone held talks with Rupert Murdoch over Warner Bros-Fox merger

‘Cable cowboy’ reveals talks as he reorganises media empire and prepares to give most of his $10bn fortune to good causes
www.ft.com www.ft.com
www.afr.com

Media moguls John Malone, Rupert Murdoch held talks over Fox merger

Malone has revealed the Warner Bros-Fox talks as he reorganises his US media empire and prepares to give most of his $15.3 billion fortune to good causes.
www.afr.com www.afr.com
thedesk.net

Report: John Malone, Rupert Murdoch discussed Warner Bros-Fox merger

John Malone and Rupert Murdoch held merger talks in 2024 over combining Warner Bros Discovery and Fox, but CNN and Fox News proved irreconcilable.
thedesk.net thedesk.net


Here is another one thats interesting there was talks at one point to merge Fox with WB but that got shut down due to how how one company cannot own both CNN and Fox News at the same time. And we are in the middle of the WB/ Discovery Spinoff.
 
Y2kTheNewOldies said:
www.broadbandtvnews.com

The merger that wasn’t: John Malone, Rupert Murdoch, and the Fox-Warner talks

In the summer of 2024, two media veterans—John Malone, the so-called “cable cowboy,” and Rupert Murdoch, the architect of modern media empires—engaged in what would become one of the most intriguin…
www.broadbandtvnews.com www.broadbandtvnews.com
www.ft.com

John Malone held talks with Rupert Murdoch over Warner Bros-Fox merger

‘Cable cowboy’ reveals talks as he reorganises media empire and prepares to give most of his $10bn fortune to good causes
www.ft.com www.ft.com
www.afr.com

Media moguls John Malone, Rupert Murdoch held talks over Fox merger

Malone has revealed the Warner Bros-Fox talks as he reorganises his US media empire and prepares to give most of his $15.3 billion fortune to good causes.
www.afr.com www.afr.com
thedesk.net

Report: John Malone, Rupert Murdoch discussed Warner Bros-Fox merger

John Malone and Rupert Murdoch held merger talks in 2024 over combining Warner Bros Discovery and Fox, but CNN and Fox News proved irreconcilable.
thedesk.net thedesk.net


Here is another one thats interesting there was talks at one point to merge Fox with WB but that got shut down due to how how one company cannot own both CNN and Fox News at the same time. And we are in the middle of the WB/ Discovery Spinoff.
Click to expand...
Maybe after the spinoff that could happen. Tubi has been adding a lot of WB content lately...those two could merge with the split off WB/HBO.
 

An Update on CNN Max

Please note: Beginning November 17, CNN Max, the 24/7 live news stream will no longer be available on HBO Max in the United States. That's because, as previously announced, CNN will be launching a new streaming product this fall.
cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com

www.hollywoodreporter.com

CNN Live Stream to Be Pulled From HBO Max Next Month as News Channel Preps New Offering

The network is slated to launch its own direct-to-consumer offering later this year.
www.hollywoodreporter.com www.hollywoodreporter.com

CNN to leave HBO Max in November. Yes this is very similar to how MS Now ends its ties to NBC News because of the Versant Spinoff. But this is tied to WB splitting from Discovery and this is one sign of how that’s going to be.
 


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