Paramount Stock Plunge Shows Perils Of Trying To Give Wall Street The Ol’ Streaming Razzle-Dazzle
19.02.2022 - 01:23
/ deadline.com
Was it the Bumblebee bit?
Paramount Global stock has plunged more than 20% since the company’s investor presentation Tuesday, including a 3% dip today. The vanishing of almost $5 billion in market value, after the company formerly known as ViacomCBS declared it was going all-in on streaming, has left even die-hard backers searching for explanations.
The virtual presentation itself was businesslike, running about 2 hours and 20 minutes, notably shorter than the three-hour one mounted by the company last year. But in a deviation from the recently established template for streaming pitches to Wall Street, Paramount’s kicked off with some shtick. As they had in 2021, board chair and controlling shareholder Shari Redstone and CEO Bob Bakish appeared together in a short sketch, trading synergistic quips while driving in Bumblebee, the yellow car from Transformers.
“I feel the need — the need for speed!” Bakish crowed from the driver’s seat, quoting Top Gun. “You go, Maverick!” Redstone replied. As they screeched to a halt, she added, “Thanks for the ride. Now let’s get to work!”
Taking the virtual stage, Bakish struck an upbeat tone. “When we spoke to you last year, some of you felt we were on an impossible mission,” he said. “But today, as you can see, it’s not only possible, it’s happening.” Repeatedly throughout the event, Bakish, Redstone and a number of other executives emphasized how fully the company was committed to streaming.
Wall Street, however, is reconsidering whether streaming is good business. A conga line of executives rolling out sizzle reels of new premium programming won’t make the splash it once did for Disney and, to a lesser extent, WarnerMedia and NBCUniversal. Not during a collective panic attack over