Paramount Settles Donald Trump Lawsuit, Clearing Path For Skydance Merger; $16M Payment But No Apology In ’60 Minutes’ Affair

[ad_1] Paramount International has reached a settlement with Donald Trump in his lawsuit in opposition to CBS Information, clearing a path for the media firm’s long-delayed merger with Skydance Media.

The settlement, introduced at near midnight Tuesday on the East Coast, requires Paramount to pay $16 million. Notably, it doesn't contain a proper apology by the corporate over its dealing with of a 60 Minutes interview. Trump sued CBS Information and its mum or dad firm, Paramount, for $20 billion over the promotion of the interview final fall with former Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump’s opponent within the presidential election.

Paramount mentioned in an announcement that it agreed that 60 Minutes sooner or later will launch transcripts of interviews with eligible U.S. presidential candidates after these interviews have aired. The discharge of transcripts shall be “topic to redactions as required for authorized or nationwide safety issues,” the corporate mentioned.

“This lawsuit is totally separate from, and unrelated to, the Skydance transaction and the FCC approval course of,” the corporate mentioned, reiterating its earlier assertion on the matter. “We'll abide by the authorized course of to defend our case.”

The FCC evaluate of the transaction had been held up by the go well with, although company chair Brendan Carr has insisted a number of instances that the regulatory course of and lawsuit are separate. Now, the evaluate can proceed, together with a “information distortion” grievance filed in opposition to CBS Information within the 60 Minutes matter.

Lawmakers, regulatory consultants and shareholders have indicated in current weeks that Paramount controlling shareholder Shari Redstone and others concerned in any settlement might be responsible for bribery. They declare {that a} financial settlement would basically imply the deal contributors are successfully paying the federal government for approval of the merger. These theories, which have taken root within the context of comparable Trump crusades in opposition to Disney, NBCUniversal and different media firms (some leading to payouts to Trump), may nicely be examined in courts within the coming months.

The Paramount-Skydance deal was formally proposed practically a yr in the past, following a months-long interval when Redstone evaluated a spread of potential suitors. At varied instances, Sony Footage (in tandem with personal fairness agency Apollo), Barry Diller and Byron Allen expressed curiosity, and an investor group led by Edgar Bronfman Jr. additionally put in a bid throughout the 45-day “go-shop” interval final summer season. By and enormous, although, Skydance had the within monitor given its longtime relationship with Paramount Footage as a co-finance accomplice. Not like some consumers, who have been mentioned to be able to dismantle the corporate’s asset portfolio and probably unload the fabled Melrose studio lot, Skydance and its CEO, David Ellison, are seen as probably the most film-friendly consumers of the bunch.

Surprisingly, although, given the shut ties between the merger contributors, the shortage of overlap within the firms’ belongings and the bullish outlook for M&A offers in the beginning of 2025, the closing course of has been an agonizingly protracted one. Paramount and Skydance had maintained the deal can be wrapped up throughout the first half of 2025 and already needed to train their choice for a 90-day extension of the contractual merger deadline.

The primary offender within the delay was the Trump go well with. Because the case wound by means of the authorized and mediation course of, the FCC’s approval of the deal remained the lone hurdle. As a result of Paramount is a managed firm, the merger doesn't require shareholder approval, although the corporate’s annual shareholder assembly will happen Wednesday morning.