Media giants WarnerMedia and ViacomCBS are considering a potential sale of The CW Network.
The CW Network has been a bastion for teen dramas and genre fare since its inception thanks to The Vampire Diaries and Supernatural, but it’s most notably become the home of DC’s serialized offerings in recent years. The network famously debuted its Arroweverse with Arrow in 2012, which encompasses a wide variety of shows including The Flash, Supergirl, Batgirl, and Superman & Lois, among others.
While the networks place within the WarnerMedia and ViacomCBS library seems staple-like, The Wall Street Journal is reporting that the media giants are “exploring a possible sale” of The CW Network, which they both co-own. The companies are debating selling off “a significant stake” or full ownership to another company. The outlet reports that talks with Nexstar Media Group Inc. are “far along” though things could easily change. Nexstar is best known for being partial owners of Food Network and the political outfit The Hill. They also operate a variety of local affiliate television and radio stations.
The Wall Street Journal continued its report by noting that other parties besides Nexstar are interested in purchasing the network. The most likely scenario will see WarnerMedia and ViacomCBS staying on as “minority owners and receiving commitments to be the primary program suppliers for the network.”
The outlet revealed that people familiar with the matter say that The CW Network isn’t profitable as a singular broadcasting station. Instead, the content created by the network is what interests the two companies. A variety of their shows, most notably bonafide hit Riverdale, ended up on streaming services like Netflix, which resulted in huge paydays for both companies. Other shows, notably The CW Network’s DC fare, eventually end up on HBO Max, boosting the streaming service’s ever-expanding catalog.
Source: The Wall Street Journal
