Who Owns CBS

CBS is owned by Paramount Skydance Corporation, following the completion of Skydance Media merger with the former Paramount Global in August 2025.

CBS built its reputation as one of the original American television broadcast networks, home to long running news programs, primetime dramas, and decades of NFL football coverage.

Skydance, led by chief executive David Ellison, bought out Paramount former controlling shareholder, National Amusements, in a deal worth roughly 8 billion dollars.

So how did a relatively young Hollywood production company end up controlling one of the oldest broadcast networks in America.

This guide will explore the Skydance Paramount merger, who actually controls the combined company today, CBS place inside the broader portfolio, and what comes next for the network.

So let us get started.

Who Owns CBS Right Now

Paramount Skydance Corporation owns CBS, along with CBS News and a wide portfolio of other entertainment brands. Current programming is listed on the official CBS website.

The Skydance Investor Group, controlled by entities connected to the Ellison family and RedBird Capital Partners, owns 100 percent of Paramount Skydance Class A shares and roughly 69 percent of Class B shares.

David Ellison, Skydance chief executive and son of Oracle founder Larry Ellison, serves as chairman and chief executive of the combined Paramount Skydance Corporation.

How The Skydance Merger Gave Ellison Control Of CBS

Skydance Media completed its merger with Paramount Global on August 7, 2025, buying out National Amusements, the Redstone family holding company that had controlled Paramount for decades.

The deal structure let Skydance investors, including entities tied to the Ellison family and RedBird Capital Partners, purchase all of National Amusements outstanding equity interests, according to Variety reporting on the merger.

Larry Ellison, David Ellison father, personally guaranteed roughly 46.7 billion dollars toward the broader deal, underscoring how central the Ellison family fortune was to making the merger happen.

What Portfolio CBS Now Sits Inside

Beyond CBS and CBS News, Paramount Skydance now controls Paramount Pictures, Paramount Television, Nickelodeon, MTV, BET, Comedy Central, Showtime, Paramount Plus, and Pluto TV.

That combined portfolio also includes Skydance own film, television, interactive gaming, and sports production divisions, folded into the newly merged company.

The breadth of that portfolio makes CBS just one piece, albeit a historically significant one, of a much larger integrated media and entertainment business.

CBS Entertainment Programming And Streaming Push

CBS remains one of the top rated networks for scripted primetime dramas and reality competition shows, a lineup that continues drawing large weekly audiences even as overall broadcast viewership declines.

The network channels much of that programming into Paramount Plus as well, letting subscribers catch up on CBS shows without needing a traditional cable package.

That dual distribution strategy, airing content on broadcast while also streaming it, has become standard practice across nearly every major American network over the past several years.

CBS Sports And NFL Broadcast Rights

CBS holds long standing broadcast rights to a significant package of NFL games each season, a relationship that predates the Skydance merger by decades.

Live sports rights remain one of the most valuable assets any broadcast network can hold, since sports programming still draws large live audiences even as scripted television viewership shifts toward streaming.

Our guide to who owns the NFL explains how the league itself is structured, separate from the broadcast networks like CBS that pay for the rights to air its games.

Paramount Skydance Pursuit Of Warner Bros Discovery

As of August 2026, Paramount Skydance is pursuing an even larger merger with Warner Bros Discovery, a deal that would bring CNN, HBO, and Warner Bros film and television studios under the same corporate umbrella as CBS.

That pending deal has faced regulatory scrutiny and legal challenges, and David Ellison has publicly discussed potentially relocating Paramount operations out of California over stalled negotiations.

Our guide to who owns Paramount covers the broader corporate parent structure that CBS now operates under in more detail.

CBS also owns and operates a large group of local television stations across major American markets, giving the network significant additional revenue and audience reach beyond its national broadcast schedule.

Those local stations remain valuable assets in their own right, generating advertising revenue independent of national programming decisions made at the corporate level.

CBS News, one of the oldest and most established news operations in American broadcasting, has faced increased scrutiny over editorial independence since the ownership change, a common concern whenever a major news organization changes corporate hands.

Is CBS Really Good Or Really Worth It

CBS remains one of the most watched broadcast networks in the country, particularly for NFL football coverage, primetime dramas, and its long running evening news broadcast, according to Poynter analysis of the network post merger outlook.

Common criticism following the Skydance merger centers on newsroom independence concerns at CBS News, along with broader worries about consolidation reducing the diversity of American media ownership.

Media analysts frequently note that CBS strong live sports and news programming gives it durable advantages over streaming only competitors, even as traditional cable and broadcast viewership continues declining industry wide.

For viewers who still value traditional broadcast news and live sports, CBS remains one of the most reliable programming sources available.

For anyone tracking media ownership concentration, the CBS ownership change is worth watching alongside the pending Warner Bros Discovery deal for its broader industry implications.

CBS All Access, later rebranded Paramount Plus, also gave the network an early foothold in streaming years before the Skydance merger, positioning it well for the current direct to consumer era.

That streaming presence gives CBS content another distribution channel beyond traditional broadcast and cable, an increasingly important factor as more viewers cut the cord entirely.

Executives across the combined company have pointed to that early streaming head start as one of the more valuable assets CBS brought into the newly merged Paramount Skydance organization.

That streaming head start, combined with sports rights and a stable local station business, gives CBS a genuinely diversified foundation heading into its next chapter under new ownership.

That foundation should help CBS remain relevant even as the broader television industry keeps shifting further toward streaming.

Frequently Asked Questions About CBS

Is CBS Still Owned By The Redstone Family?

No. Skydance bought out National Amusements, the Redstone family holding company, as part of the August 2025 merger.

Who Runs CBS Today?

David Ellison serves as chairman and chief executive of Paramount Skydance Corporation, CBS parent company.

Does CBS Own CBS News Separately?

No. CBS News operates as part of CBS itself, both owned directly by Paramount Skydance Corporation.

Is Paramount Trying To Buy Warner Bros Discovery?

Yes. As of 2026, Paramount Skydance is pursuing a merger with Warner Bros Discovery, though the deal faces regulatory and legal challenges.