MAM
Ants Digital appoints Ratnadeep Sharma as executive producer
Mumbai: Tech led marketing agency Ants Digital has appointed Ratnadeep Sharma (RD) as executive producer. He will be based out of the agency’s head office in Gurgaon and will oversee all video productions and operations.
RD joins Ants Digital after working for several agencies, production houses, media publishing houses and television channels. He comes with over 10 years of experience in advertising and has produced over 2000 TVCs, television series, web commercials, AVs, viral content for over 80 leading national international clients.
“We have been consistently scaling our presence in the digital space, and with his appointment, we will reinforce our operations in digital film production, 2D animation and motion graphics,” said Ants Digital CEO Sanjay Arora. “RD has a good understanding of video production and has vast experience in live shoots and animation, which will add immense value to our clients. We look forward to producing some great content with RD on board.”
RD has also been the youngest member of the jury panel at many prestigious Indian and international film festivals. One of his campaigns for the online promotion of “Bahubali 2” won the DigiPub award for best brand partnership. He has worked with well-known industry brands such as JW Marriott, Dupont, BASF (Nunhems), Hewlett Packard, Coca Cola, Dominos, KFC, Accor group of hotels, adidas, among many others.
“Ants has been scaling its operations, and I am really excited to build and grow this further,” said Sharma on his appointment. “Videos and films are the need of the hour for brands to communicate with their target audience in a better and interesting way. The digital prowess and unique mix of service offerings of Ants will bring more value to clients now with their in-house film production facility,” he added.
MAM
Paramount set to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery in $81 billion deal
Shareholders back merger, combined entity could reshape streaming and studios.
MUMBAI: Lights, camera… consolidation, Hollywood’s latest blockbuster might be happening off-screen. Shareholders of Warner Bros. Discovery have voted in favour of selling the company to Paramount in a deal valued at $81 billion rising to nearly $111 billion including debt setting the stage for one of the biggest shake-ups in modern media. The proposed merger, still subject to regulatory approvals, would bring together a vast portfolio spanning HBO Max, CNN, and franchises such as Harry Potter under the same umbrella as Paramount’s own heavyweights, including Top Gun and CBS.
At the heart of the deal is streaming scale. Executives have indicated plans to combine HBO Max and Paramount+ into a single platform, potentially creating a stronger challenger to giants like Netflix and Amazon’s Prime Video. Current market data suggests HBO Max holds around 12 per cent of US on-demand subscriptions, compared to Paramount+’s 3 per cent, together still trailing Netflix’s 19 per cent and Disney’s combined 27 per cent via Disney+ and Hulu.
Paramount CEO David Ellison has signalled that while platforms may merge, HBO’s creative identity will remain intact, stating the brand should “stay HBO” even within a broader ecosystem.
Beyond streaming, the deal would redraw the map for film production. Combining two of Hollywood’s oldest studios Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros., the new entity aims to scale output to over 30 films annually, while maintaining a 45-day theatrical window. Warner Bros. currently commands around 21 per cent of the US box office, compared to Paramount’s 6 per cent, underscoring the strategic weight of the acquisition.
But scale comes with scrutiny. Critics warn that fewer players could mean reduced consumer choice, rising subscription costs, and potential job cuts as the combined company looks to streamline overlapping operations while managing billions in debt.
The news business, too, faces a reset. CNN would join forces at least structurally with Paramount-owned CBS, raising questions about editorial independence and positioning. The merger has already drawn political attention in the United States, particularly given perceived ties between the Ellison family and Donald Trump, though the company maintains that newsroom autonomy will be preserved.
If approved, the deal would mark another milestone in Hollywood’s consolidation wave shrinking the industry’s traditional “big six” studios to a “big four”, with Paramount joining Disney, Universal, and Sony at the top table.
In an industry built on storytelling, this merger may well become its most consequential plot twist yet.
