Elon Musk is reported to have invested about $1 billion in newly created media company Skydance.

TechCrunch reported on Oct. 22 that the investment news came days after Paramount acquired Warner Bros. Discovery for $110 billion and launched an integrated company.

The new company is working to bring Paramount+, HBO Max, CBS, CNN, MTV, TBS, Comedy Central and Food Network under a single corporate structure. Co-CEOs David Ellison (데이비드 엘리슨) and Ynon Kreiz (이넌 크레이즈) are overseeing the integration.

Musk’s funds were reported to have been deployed around the same time as additional contributions by other existing investors. Laurene Powell Jobs (로린 파월 잡스), a board member, was also reported to have taken part in the process. Skydance secured financial flexibility through the investment. The company faces the task of cutting costs and lifting its share price.

Skydance has already pledged to cut costs by $6 billion over the next three years. The company is effectively being pressed to carry out large-scale restructuring and improve profitability right after bringing major platforms and broadcast networks together. As a result, the inflow of funds may go beyond a simple financial investment and could also affect the stabilisation of early operations after the integration.

The link between Musk and the Ellison family is again drawing attention. Musk has publicly praised the Ellisons in the past. He has maintained a close relationship with Larry Ellison (래리 엘리슨). Musk brought Larry Ellison onto Tesla’s board in 2018, and Larry Ellison invested in Tesla the same year.

Larry Ellison later invested $1 billion in 2022 to help Musk’s acquisition of Twitter. In light of that relationship, the investment is attracting interest not only as a financial decision by Musk but also as part of a long-standing cooperation structure with the Ellison side.

Skydance did not immediately respond to related questions. With the company pursuing cost cuts and defending its share price at the same time after the integration, further confirmation is needed on what terms Musk’s money came in on and what impact it may have on management or the ownership structure going forward.