**New Managers, Same Old Problems for Paramount Skydance**
Paramount Skydance recently reported a loss in the third quarter, continuing to struggle with challenges that have plagued the company — which controls CBS, Paramount+, and Comedy Central — over the past few years.
Two of its largest revenue sources, TV advertising sales and TV distribution fees, continued their downward trend. Overall pro forma revenue during the period fell 3%, dropping to approximately $6.1 billion. Specifically, TV advertising revenue declined by 12%, while fees from TV distribution dipped 7%.
This third fiscal quarter marks the first financial reporting period under the management of Paramount’s new owners, the Ellison family and their hand-picked executive team. Expectations have been tempered, as hundreds of layoffs have already occurred in recent weeks, with more expected as the media conglomerate confronts the ongoing shift of viewers away from traditional linear TV towards on-demand video services.
At the same time, Paramount is signaling a strategic pivot towards streaming, aiming to build a business that can compete with giants like Netflix, Google, and Amazon. Among its recent moves:
– Committing $7.7 billion over seven years to TKO Group for the rights to broadcast UFC matches year-round.
– Acquiring conservative-leaning opinion site The Free Press for $150 million and appointing its founder, Bari Weiss, as the top editorial executive at CBS News.
– Pursuing an acquisition of another traditional media company facing significant pressure, Warner Bros. Discovery.
Wall Street observers admire Paramount Skydance’s renewed assertiveness but remain cautious. Robert Fishman, a media industry analyst at MoffettNathanson, noted in a July research report, “Paramount still faces the decline of its linear assets and related cash flows. The key question is whether the pace of linear erosion can slow enough to give its direct-to-consumer (DTC) strategy time to scale.”
In a letter to shareholders released Monday, Paramount pledged to improve operations, targeting total revenue of $30 billion by 2026. The company also predicted growth in streaming profits within the next year.
More updates to follow as Paramount navigates this critical transition period.
https://variety.com/2025/tv/news/paramount-skydance-q3-loss-tv-revenue-david-ellison-1236574238/
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