Viacom's Paramount to Buy DreamWorks for $1.6 Billion

Viacom's Paramount to Buy DreamWorks for $1.6 Billion By GERALDINE FABRIKANT and SHARON WAXMAN Published: December 9, 2005 LOS ANGELES, Dec. 9 - Moving swiftly after negotiations bogged down with a rival, Viacom Inc. closed a deal on Friday to pay $1.6 billion for DreamWorks SKG, the Hollywood studio founded by Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen, according to an executives involved in the negotiations. Viacom and its studio division, Paramount Pictures, sealed the acquisition at a meeting on Friday between Mr. Geffen, Mr. Spielberg, Tom Freston, Viacom's chief executive, and Brad Grey, Paramount's chairman. DreamWorks had been in advanced talks with General Electric's NBC-Universal, but told Universal on Friday that if it could not meet Viacom's price, DreamWorks would break off negotiations, according to an executive close to those discussions. Shortly thereafter DreamWorks confirmed the purchase by Viacom. MORE...