Ahead of quarterly earnings, the two companies are not in a position to announce their ‘re-merger’ according to reports. The delay is due to final negotiations over an exchange ratio for the deal but a deal is still expected later this week.

Both units are controlled owned by National Amusements, which is controlled by the Redstone family. In 2018, a merger agreement was ready before leadership disagreements around Viacom boss Bob Bakish and former CBS chief Les Moonves derailed it. With Moonves out of the picture following a sexual harassment scandal, an exec structure has already been reportedly agreed for a merged business. Viacom boss Bob Bakish will be the CEO of a newly–combined company, with acting CBS CEO Joe Ianniello set to run CBS brands.

Meanwhile Viacom has delivered the long-promised turnaround in advertising sales, with domestic ad revenues rising 6 per cent. Net earnings for Viacom’s fiscal third quarter rose to $544 million (€607m)from $514 million a year ago. Revenues rose 4 per cent to $3.357 billion.

Categories: Articles, Broadcast, Business, Content, M&A, Results