CNN owner Warner Bros. Discovery to split into two companies
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A man rides a scooter outside of Warner Bros. Discovery's Techwood campus. Photo: Christian Monterrosa/AFP via Getty Images
Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company to Atlanta-based cable channels such as CNN, TBS and TNT, plans to split into two publicly traded companies, largely parting its television networks from its streaming business.
Why it matters: The move announced Monday gives the company's businesses flexibility to compete while WBD manages its debt following Discovery's 2022 purchase of WarnerMedia, Axios' Sara Fischer reports.
Yes, but: It's not clear how that will affect Warner Bros. Discovery's presence in metro Atlanta, where the family of companies created by local icon Ted Turner employ thousands of people.
- Despite mergers and the migration of most CNN operations to New York and Washington, D.C., the companies are well represented in Atlanta's civic, corporate and communities' scenes.
Zoom in: WBD Streaming & Studios will comprise HBO, Warner Bros. Pictures and DC Studios; WBD Global Networks will include CNN, TNT Sports in the U.S. and Discovery.
- The company expects the separation will be completed by mid-2026.
What they're saying: WBD said the decoupling would help both companies "be faster and more aggressive in pursuing opportunities that strengthen their competitive positions."
- "By operating as two distinct and optimized companies in the future, we are empowering these iconic brands with the sharper focus and strategic flexibility they need to compete most effectively in today's evolving media landscape," WBD chief executive David Zaslav said in a statement.
Catch up quick: WBD has been exploring a spinoff for some time. Last December, it announced a new corporate structure that divided its linear television business from its streaming and studio businesses.
- The move, the company said at the time, would "enhance its strategic flexibility and create potential opportunities to unlock additional shareholder value."
- It had also explored mergers with cable companies like Paramount Global, but those talks never materialized.
Zoom out: Amid cord-cutting, more entertainment giants are eyeing ways to offload their legacy TV assets to focus on streaming.
- Comcast said last year it planned to spin off NBCUniversal's cable networks into a separate, publicly traded company. That collection of assets — including USA Network, CNBC, MSNBC, Oxygen, E, SYFY and Golf Channel — will be part of a corporate parent called Versant.
- Disney CEO Bob Iger in 2023 teased the possible sale of the firm's linear TV assets, including its broadcast network ABC, but he later suggested interest in the idea had cooled.
Disclosure: Sara Fischer is a paid contributor for CNN.