Skydance, Paramount Deal Extended As FCC Dithers

The $8 billion merger agreement between Skydance Media and Paramount Global reached a critical juncture Monday as its initial deadline expired without finalization. The deal, originally slated to close by this date, has been automatically extended for an additional 90 days—pushing the new target to July 7, 2025—due to the pending approval from the FCC. 

The extension is built into the terms of the pact, triggered when all closing conditions except regulatory approvals have been satisfied or waived, reflecting the complexity of transferring Paramount’s broadcast licenses, including those of its 28 CBS-owned television stations.

The merger, announced last July, after months of turbulent negotiations, aims to unite Skydance—a production powerhouse behind films like Mission: Impossible and Top Gun: Maverick—with Paramount Global, home to iconic assets like CBS, MTV, and a vast film library. 

Valued at an enterprise level of $28 billion, the deal positions Skydance at $4.75 billion, with significant financial backing from the Ellison family (Oracle founder Larry Ellison contributing $6 billion) and RedBird Capital Partners ($2 billion). National Amusements Inc. (NAI), Paramount’s controlling shareholder led by Shari Redstone, will receive $1.75 billion plus the assumption of $650 million in debt, totaling a $2.4 billion enterprise value, while Paramount’s Class B shareholders are set to get $15 per share. An October 2024 filing clarified that Skydance CEO David Ellison, not Larry, will control 100% of the Ellison family’s voting interests in the merged entity.

The FCC’s delay stems from its review of the license transfers, complicated by broader political and legal pressures. Republican FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, a Trump appointee, has tied the merger’s fate to unrelated controversies, notably a “news distortion” complaint from the Center for American Rights over a CBS 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris from October 2024. 

Carr’s aggressive anti-DEI stance—vowing to block mergers involving companies with diversity policies—adds further uncertainty, despite Paramount scaling back some DEI programs in February 2025 to align with Trump administration directives. The FCC’s informal 180-day review timeline, which began in late 2024, can be paused or extended, and while the first extension keeps the deal alive, a second 90-day buffer could push closure to October 4, 2025, if needed. Failure to close by then, or a regulatory block, could lead to termination, with Paramount owing Skydance a $400 million breakup fee.

Legal challenges also loom, including a Delaware class-action lawsuit from New York City pension funds, filed in early 2025, seeks to block the deal, alleging it shortchanges public shareholders and that Redstone favored her own interests.