Paramount Global announces it will cut 15% of U.S. workforce, shares rise on second-quarter earnings

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Paramount Global is cutting 15% of its U.S. workforce, or about 2,000 jobs, part of a broader cost-cutting plan as it prepares for a merger with Skydance Media. Paramount has identified $500 million in cost savings, which include the head count reductions, as part of $2 billion in synergies related to its transaction with Skydance. The job cuts, which will begin in the coming weeks and largely conclude by year end, will target the company's marketing and communications department and employees who work in finance, legal, technology and other support functions, the company said during its earnings conference call Thursday. Paramount agreed to a merger with Skydance Media last month. That deal includes a 45-day go-shop period — in which a special committee of Paramount's board could find another buyer — that concludes later this month. Meanwhile, earnings surged as the company's streaming division swung to an unexpected profit — the first time Paramount has announced a profitable quarter for its direct-to-consumer business. Shares climbed more than 5% in after-hours trading Thursday. Here's how Paramount performed in the quarter compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG: