Paramount’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, with an enterprise value of approximately $110 billion and more than 15,000 iconic titles in its new portfolio, is one of the largest global entertainment transactions of the last decade. Its significance goes beyond the numbers. For the first time since Walt Disney, a major Hollywood studio is back under the direction of a long-term business vision, guided by an owner-operator approach rather than the logic of quarterly market results.
In this historic transition, Gerry Cardinale’s role was crucial. Paramount, backed by equity from the Ellison family and RedBird Capital Partners – founded and led by Cardinale – prevailed over competition from other global giants. But RedBird was not just an investor; it was one of the deal’s industrial architects.
Not just capital, but industrial vision
RedBird contributed to shaping the strategic vision, defining the post-merger leadership, and guiding the process alongside the Ellison family. Key figures in the future management structure come from the RedBird ecosystem, confirming direct operational involvement. The underlying theme is consistent with Cardinale’s long-standing model: investing in iconic assets and building platforms capable of generating value over time through industrial discipline, active governance, and a focus on economic fundamentals.
In an era dominated by technology and platforms, this transaction reaffirms a deeper principle: platforms evolve, but iconic intellectual properties endure. The new group will control one of the largest content portfolios in the world, including Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings, Mission: Impossible, the DC Universe, Game of Thrones, Top Gun, and thousands of other titles.
The true strategic infrastructure is not just technological; it is the library. The competitive advantage lies in the ability to distribute, refresh, and monetize premium intellectual property on a global scale through streaming, cinema, licensing, sports, and international partnerships.
Streaming, sports, and global scale
The integration of Paramount+, HBO Max, and Pluto creates a direct-to-consumer operator with critical mass and estimated synergies of over $6 billion. Alongside scripted content, one of its pillars is its sports portfolio: NFL, Olympics, UFC, PGA, NHL, NCAA, and the Champions League. Sports is now one of the most resilient assets in the media ecosystem, crucial for retention, premium advertising, and global distribution. The ambition is not simply to compete with major streaming players, but to build an integrated ecosystem capable of combining storytelling, sports, and technology under a unified industrial governance model.
With a valuation of 7.5x fully synergized 2026 EBITDA and a declared path toward investment-grade metrics within three years, the transaction also explicitly addresses leverage. The strategy is consistent: industrial growth and financial discipline are not alternatives, but complementary levers. In a sector often characterized by volatility and short-term pressure, the message is clear: value is built over time.
The AC Milan case: a model already applied
For RedBird, the transaction is part of a broader strategy: creating value at the intersection of sport, media, and entertainment. Closer to home, AC Milan’s case provides a concrete example. Since 2022, the year RedBird entered the club, revenues have grown from approximately €298 million to €495 million (+66% in three seasons), with a return to profitability for three consecutive years after 17 years of losses. At the same time, over €250 million has been reinvested in the first team over the past two seasons, underscoring the centrality of the sporting project. Average attendance has reached approximately 72,000 per match, among the highest in Europe.
The principle is the same: iconic assets, stable governance, financial discipline, enhancement of intellectual property, and infrastructure development – starting with the future new stadium as a long-term industrial lever.
A new architecture of global media
The Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery deal is therefore not merely a merger between two historic groups. It represents an attempt to redesign the architecture of global media for the next decade, restoring long-term governance, systemic value creation, and the centrality of intellectual property.
For Italy, it also confirms a model already visible in our country: building value from iconic brands through patient capital, operational expertise, and an international vision. In this transition, Cardinale’s leadership marks a shift that goes beyond the individual transaction: it signals a new approach to governing major cultural assets in the evolving global media cycle.
Translated from: https://forbes.it/2026/03/03/gerry-cardinale-uomo-operazione-paramount-warner-bros