The on-again, off-again, negotiations over a merger between Skydance Media and Paramount Global have collapsed, with the Wall Street Journal publishing a statement from National Amusements confirming that the talks have ended. 

National Amusements, which is owned by the Redstone family and run by Shari Redstone, owns 77% of the voting stock of Paramount.    

In a statement National Amusements said “that they have not been able to reach mutually acceptable terms regarding the potential transaction with Skydance Media for the acquisition of a controlling stake in NAI.”

Talks between David Ellison’s Skydance Media and the Shari Redstone have been going on for several months. Chances of an agreement rose in April, when Skydance entered into an exclusive window to negotiate with Paramount, and then fell when they were unable to agree on terms in May. Last week, however, the two parties seemed close to a deal, with CNBC and the Wall Street Journal both reporting that a deal was expected this week. 

The Wall Street Journal is now reporting that Shari Redstone “will now likely pursue a sale of just National Amusements, without trying to merge Paramount into another company, people familiar with the matter said. NAI has received interest from two potential parties—an investor consortium led by Hollywood producer Steven Paul, as well as from media executive Edgar Bronfman Jr., backed by private-equity firm Bain Capital, the Journal earlier reported.”  

The New York Times reported that one hitch in completing the deal was whether Skydance would indemnify Redstone from shareholder lawsuits. Another stumbling block was the growing lack of trust between the two parties.

Other potential bidders for Paramount include Sony, Byron Allen,  Warner Bros. Discovery, and others. 

WATERTOWN, S.D.—The National Association of Tower Erectors have announced that on Monday, March 25, the organization’s co-founder Bill Carlson died at this home.

Carlson enjoyed a five decade career in the wireless infrastructure industry, including owning and operating Tower Systems Inc. as its president and CEO since 1975. In 1995, he helped bring together 60 independent tower contractors to establish NATE with the mission of providing uniform safety standards, education, communications and serving as the unified voice for the wireless and broadcast infrastructure industries. Today, NATE has more than 870 member companies.

In 2014, Carlson was inducted into the Wireless Hall of Fame by the Wireless History Foundation and was the initial recipient of the NATE Lifetime Service Award. The NATE award has subsequently been named the Bill Carlson Lifetime Service Award.

Colleagues of Carlson described him upon his passing as an iconic figure and Renaissance man for the wireless industry.

Carlson is survived by his wife Ruth Lorraine Carlson, daughters Kari Carlson and Kelli Anderson, son-in-law Eric Anderson and granddaughters DeLaney and Avreigh.

WATERTOWN, S.D.—The National Association of Tower Erectors has announced that it will launch its new STAR Initiative app in time for the start of the 2015-2016 NATE STAR Initiative program, which kicks off Oct. 1. The STAR app is designed to provide means of submitting Site Safety Audit documentation in real-time from the field via a smartphone, tablet, computer or other mobile device. The app will be available for free on both iOS and Android platforms.

The deadline to apply/renew for the STAR Initiative is Aug. 31 for the program that will start Oct. 1 and run to Sept. 30, 2016. To apply, visit www.natehome.com.