Gunnar Wiedenfels: Celebs Rumors

Manori Ravindran International EditorWarner Bros. Discovery’s plans to merge streaming services HBO Max and Discovery Plus in the U.S.

Warner Bros Discovery, the company created by merging Discovery Inc. and WarnerMedia, and signed a new employment agreement through the end of 2027.

Eventually, HBO Max and Discovery+ will come together as a single streaming offering, but the integration will “take a while,” CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels said at an investor conference today.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterDiscovery — which is about to become Warner Bros. Discovery within the next month, when its merger with AT&T’s WarnerMedia closes — has confirmed its plans to combine its current streaming service Discovery Plus and WarnerMedia’s HBO Max into one service, rather than offer the two platforms as a bundle.Discovery CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels, who will also serve as CFO of the newly combined Warner Bros.

Jennifer Maas TV Business WriterDiscovery CEO promises that the company is not in a race to win the “spending wars” on content when it closes its deal to acquire AT&T’s WarnerMedia and become Warner Bros. Discovery.“We’re going to spend more on content — but you’re not going to see us come in and say, ‘Alright, we’re spending $5 billion more on content,” Zaslav said during an investor call Thursday to discuss the company’s Q4 earnings results.Zaslav says the new company — which will run both Discovery’s current major streamer Discovery Plus and WarnerMedia’s HBO Max — will be “looking to monetize our IP to grow the value of the overall company.”Discovery CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels echoed Zaslav’s point, saying “it’s not about winning” and “spending more money doesn’t score goals.” Click here to sign up for Variety‘s free Strictly Business newsletter covering earnings, financial and investment news, and more.Discovery revealed Thursday it reached 22 million paying streaming subscribers across its portfolio of offerings by the end of 2021.

Cynthia Littleton Business EditorWarner Bros. Discovery is projected to shoulder less debt that expected after the merger is completed — good news that Discovery chief David Zaslav trumpeted to investors on Wednesday as he offered a glimpse of the planning under way as the companies strive to close the transaction by the middle of next year.During Discovery’s third quarter earnings conference call, Zaslav revealed that Kevin Mayer, former Disney executive, has signed on as a consultant to advise on the enlarged company’s direct to consumer distribution strategies.

Executives on both sides of the $43-billion WarnerMedia-Discovery merger confirmed the deal is on track to close by the middle of next year but details otherwise remain scarce on the combination that will reshape the media industry.

Discovery on Thursday reported its third-quarter financials, including an 8 percent U.S. advertising revenue drop compared to the year-ago period due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Discovery has extended the tenure of Gunnar Wiedenfels as CFO. On Friday, the cable network group said in an SEC filing that it had signed an agreement on Sept.

HGTV and Food Network viewers should get set for a September full of new TV show premieres, Discovery CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels told an investor conference on Wednesday. "We're coming in locked and loaded," he told the Bank of America Securities 2020 Media, Communications and Entertainment Conference during a session that was webcast.

By Jill Goldsmith