Report: Media Mogul Byron Allen Could Still Be After Paramount

Media mogul Byron Allen is considering putting together a topping bid for Paramount, people familiar with the matter said, a move that would reopen a blockbuster takeover battle that captivated Hollywood and Wall Street this spring.

According to Semfor, Allen was canvassing private investors as recently as this week, the people said, testing whether to try and top Paramount’s pending sale to independent studio Skydance. That deal, struck last month, gives Paramount until Aug. 21 to field competing bids.

Byron Allen

Allen in January offered to buy Paramount, which is controlled by the Redstone family but also has public shareholders, for $14.3 billion. But his bid, along with early interest from Warner Bros. Discovery and late nibbles from Barry Diller and Seagram’s heir Edgar Bronfman, Jr., were edged out by deeper pockets. Skydance, backed by billions from CEO David Ellison’s father, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, and investment firm RedBird Capital, ultimately beat out a joint bid from Sony and private-equity firm Apollo.

A spokesman for Allen disputed this report Friday afternoon, without adding details.

Allen told an interviewer in May that his bid offered regulatory certainty: “This deal will live or die at the FCC. My advice would be to walk into the FCC with someone who is FCC approved, who owns and operates television stations.” It’s unclear if Allen will finalize a bid.

Axios reported this week that Bronfman is also talking to bankers about a revived bid for National Amusements, the Redstone family vehicle that controls Paramount.