How Paramount Became a Cautionary Tale of the Streaming Wars
Shari Redstone inherited her father’s storied media empire and tried to take on Netflix. Now it’s looking for a buyer.
Sumner Redstone was a buyer, not a seller. Starting in the mid-1980s, he built his family’s movie theater chain into one of the world’s most valuable media companies, Viacom, through high-profile acquisitions. He outmaneuvered peers to acquire a legendary broadcast network (CBS), an iconic studio (Paramount Pictures) and popular cable channels (Nickelodeon and MTV).
Redstone relished his Hollywood lifestyle. He attended premieres, cycled through young girlfriends and hosted stars at his Los Angeles mansion. He couldn’t imagine surrendering any part of his company. In 2016, when then-Chief Executive Officer Philippe Dauman tried to sell a minority stake of Paramount studio—the company was struggling, and he was trying to raise money—the 93-year-old Redstone ousted Dauman, his longtime lawyer and protégé, from the company. “Viacom is at the center of my life,” Redstone, a lawyer himself, wrote in his memoir, A Passion to Win. “It is my world.”