Warner Bros. Discovery Announces Split into Two Public Companies
New York, June 9, 2025 – Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) revealed plans to divide into two publicly traded companies by mid-2026, separating its declining cable TV operations from its thriving streaming and studio businesses. The announcement, made on June 9, 2025, aims to sharpen strategic focus amid a rapidly evolving media landscape. The Streaming & Studios company, led by CEO David Zaslav, will include Warner Bros. Television, Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group, DC Studios, HBO, and Max, along with their film and television libraries. The Global Networks company, under CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels, will house CNN, TNT Sports, Discovery, top European free-to-air channels, and digital platforms like Discovery+ and Bleacher Report.
The move follows a December 2024 restructuring plan and reflects industry trends, with Comcast’s recent spin-off of NBCUniversal’s cable networks into Versant. WBD’s shares surged over 9% in premarket trading, despite a symbolic shareholder vote rejecting Zaslav’s $51 million 2024 pay package. The split, structured as a tax-free transaction, aims to insulate the profitable streaming unit from cable’s $9 billion writedown and $37 billion debt burden. Analysts like Ross Benes note challenges in selling cable assets due to market decline, but new distribution deals with Comcast and Charter may stabilize the Global Networks unit.
X posts, like @WesternJournalX, highlight the strategic pivot, while @sherman4949 argues the split addresses the failed 2022 WarnerMedia-Discovery merger’s value creation. The restructuring, backed by J.P. Morgan and Kirkland & Ellis, could spur media consolidation, with Zaslav eyeing a deal-friendly Trump administration.
