CNN —Paramount Global—the sprawling media empire behind CBS, MTV, and one of Hollywood’s most storied movie studios—has agreed to merge with technology scion David Ellison’s Skydance Media, ending years of speculation over the company’s fate. The complicated transaction will see Skydance first buy National Amusements, then merge with Paramount, valuing Skydance at $4.75 billion. The combined company will be helmed by Ellison as chief executive and former NBCUniversal chief Jeff Shell as president. The deal caps a tumultuous and protracted saga that began in December, with the two companies entering into exclusive negotiations in April, resulting in the ouster of longtime Paramount chief executive Bob Bakish. In the meantime, the company has been run by a triumvirate of leaders: Brian Robbins, chief executive of Paramount Pictures; Chris McCarthy, chief executive of Showtime and MTV Entertainment Studios; and George Cheeks, chief executive of CBS.

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