What David Zaslav Has Planned for First Week Leading Warner Bros. Discovery

The new Warner Bros. Discovery leadership is starting to unify its policies across the two parts of the company. I hear that Adria Alpert Romm, chief people and culture officer, sent an email this morning to WarnerMedia employees about the implementation of a new hybrid work schedule.

“You’re seeing the newest CEO in the business, after having studied the market for a year, describe the business model perfectly as far as we’re concerned,” Fithian told reporters at a Tuesday press conference. “If you get a movie that works well theatrically and pops, it has a window, it also means it helps that movie do better when it hits the home on streaming.”Last year, Warner Bros. was one of the studios leading experiments with day-and-date releasing, putting all 2021 films on HBO Max and in theaters simultaneously as a way to handle the uncertainty of theaters reopening during the COVID-19 pandemic.

TNT and TBS are moving out of the scripted game under new parent company Warner Bros. Discovery, which under CEO David Zaslav has promised $3 billion in cost savings in the post-WarnerMedia merger era, Variety has learned exclusively.The WarnerMedia-run cable channels will no longer develop new scripted content, two sources close to the matter tell Variety.

the Q1 earnings were released. “As you’ve heard me say, we are not trying to win the direct-to-consumer spending war,” the WBD chief said, instead promising that the newly combined WarnerMedia-Discovery company would “invest in scale smartly.”He already made the first difficult choice within the first week after Discovery closed its $43 billion acquisitor of the larger WarnerMedia: Zaslav, notorious in the industry for being a no-nonsense cost-cutter, decided to close down the much-hyped CNN+.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterIn the wake of big spender Netflix’s Q1 shocking subscriber loss news, David Zaslav made a point to say Warner Bros. Discovery “will not overspend to drive subscriber growth” during Discovery’s first-quarter earnings call Tuesday.“As you’ve heard me say, we are not trying to win the direct-to-consumer spending war,” the WBD CEO said, instead promising that the newly combined WarnerMedia-Discovery company would “invest in scale smartly.”Warner Bros.

In Warner Bros Discovery’s first earnings call with Wall Street analysts, CEO David Zaslav re-emphasized his plan to take a prudent approach to streaming as he guides the newly merged company.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorWarner Bros. Discovery said profit rose in the first quarter despite declines in traditional TV audiences, as revenue from advertising and distribution rose thanks in part to the company’s streaming inititiatives.Warner Bros.

In the last three years, we’ve seen every major studio launch their own streaming service (Apple TV+, HBO Max, Disney+, Paramount+, Peackock) in order to stay competitive. But streaming, which just seemed like it was hitting a new golden age, has hit a few major speedbumps.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterWarner Bros. Discovery and AT&T each ended the trading week with their respective shares selling at a 3% increase from where the stocks opened Monday.The newly formed Warner Bros. Discovery, born out of the $43 billion merger of Discovery, Inc.

David Zaslav expressed a lot of excitement for the future of his newly merged company on Thursday during a company town hall with Oprah Winfrey at the Warner Bros. Burbank lot, he was vague on details for some immediate issues, including where $3 billion in planned cuts will come from. When asked by Winfrey about the cuts, Zaslav said that his transition team is still in the process of sifting through assets from both sides of the new company to determine where such cuts could be made.

DC Entertainment, multiple sources close to the situation told Variety.It’s been less than a week since Discovery closed its $43 billion deal for WarnerMedia, joining one of the largest producers of reality programming with one of the most venerable entertainment brands under the new moniker of Warner Bros. Discovery.

Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav and other top execs are meeting with employees in a town hall this morning on the Warner lot in Burbank. It’s the first large-scale staff meeting since last Friday’s close of the $43 billion merger.

Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav brought out the big guns during his address to the new company at its first global town hall for employees Thursday.The newly merged company brought out its most famous employee, Oprah Winfrey, to moderate the event and to help introduce Zaslav to Hollywood.Winfrey is a longtime supporter of the media mogul, who has championed the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) — a cable channel jointly jointed by Warner Bros. Discovery and Harpo Studio — alongside her since its launch in 2011.

Warner Bros. confirmed it has removed part of its dialogue from "Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore" to satisfy the Chinese government.

AT&T’s stock price on Monday jumped 8%, to $19.67, as a probable result of Friday’s closure of the deal. The Warner Bros. Discovery share price dipped to $24.48 in after-hours trading, but the start and finish were close enough that the day could hardly be called a roller coaster.Monday was the first day of public trading for Warner Bros.

Warner Bros. Discovery shares had a volatile debut, rising early in the session but heading lower as analysts dissected the newly combined entity following the deal’s close on Friday. Reports out today – and more will follow – range from a thumbs-up on WBD’s streaming, content and planned cost savings, to caution on its debt and its big portfolio of linear cable networks.

Brent Lang Executive Editor of Film and MediaWall Street appears to like what Warner Bros. Discovery is selling.The combined media company started off its first full day of trading Monday in the green. Shares of Warner Bros.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorThere’s a new contender in the arena.As Discovery begins its new era of operating Warner Bros., HBO and Turner, all eyes are on how the new company will navigate the media sector’s streaming wars with thousands of hours of content from popular TV brands like TLC, TBS, TNT, CNN and HBO. Behind that effort, however, could look a new sports giant that is poised to add another deep-pocketed player vying for major league negotiations that it previously ignored.Warner Bros.

closed on Friday.Zaslav’s travel agenda will take him to WarnerMedia’s global headquarters in New York on Monday, Warner Bros. offices in Atlanta on Tuesday, WarnerMedia/HBO offices in Culver City on Wednesday, and concluding with a town hall at WarnerMedia offices on the iconic Warner Bros. Studios lot in Burbank, according to the individual.

The final bow has been placed atop the $40 billion merger of WarnerMedia and Discovery, forming one of the largest pure content players in the media business.