Paramount outlines plans for Warner Bros. cuts

This is read by an automated voice.Please report any issues or inconsistencies here.

Many in Hollywood fear Warner Bros.Discovery’s sale will trigger steep job losses — at a time when the industry already has been ravaged by dramatic downsizing and the flight of productions from Los Angeles.David Ellison‘s Paramount Skydance is seeking to allay some of those concerns by detailing its plans to save $6 billion, including job cuts, should Paramount succeed in its bid to buy the larger Warner Bros.

Discovery.Leaders of the combined company would search for savings by focusing on “duplicative operations across all aspects of the business — specifically back office, finance, corporate, legal, technology, infrastructure and real estate,” Paramount said in documents filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission.Paramount is locked in an uphill battle to buy the storied studio behind Batman, Harry Potter, Scooby-Doo and “The Big Bang Theory.” The firm’s proposed $108.4-billion deal would include swallowing HBO, HBO Max, CNN, TBS, Food Network and other Warner cable channels.Warner’s board prefers Netflix’s proposed $82.7-billion deal, and has repeatedly rebuffed the Ellison family’s proposals.

That prompted Paramount to turn hostile last month and make its case directly to Warner investors on its website and in regulatory filings.Shareholders may ultimately decide the winner.Hollywood Inc.

Netflix wants to buy Warner Bros.and HBO, but Paramount refuses to go away, launching a hostile bid.

Here’s a timeline of key developments.Paramount previously disclosed that it would target $6 billion in synergies.And it has stressed the proposed merger would make Hollywood stronger — not weaker.

The firm, however, recently acknowledged that it would shave about 10% from program spending should it succeed in combining Paramount and Warner Bros.Paramount said the cuts would come from areas other than film and television studio operations.A film ent...