Billionaire businessman Brandon Korff, heir to the Paramount empire who divides his time between Tel Aviv and Los Angeles, has decided, in a strategic move that fundamentally changes the US media market, to sell control of his media and film empire to David Ellison, heir to Larry Ellison's media empire. The deal is valued at $8 billion. One of the most interesting and significant deals in the US media market tells the story of the next generation of the most influential Jews in the world.
A major deal that is changing the US media market is closing these days, in which control of the Paramount Global empire will be sold from the Korff family to the Ellison family for $8 billion. Behind the scenes are two young Jews, the next generation of the world's most influential Jewish businessmen: Brandon Korff and David Ellison.
Thirty-six-year-old Korff is the son of Shari Redstone, the chairwoman of the media empire Paramount Global, which the family inherited from the grandfather, Sumner Redstone. Korff is a successful businessman who, along with his family, holds the holding company National Amusements, which controls Paramount. Alongside his activities in media and entertainment, Korff is a well-known businessman in Israel after having a three-year relationship with top model Yael Shelbia. Korff divides his time between Los Angeles and Tel Aviv and has donated to IDF soldiers and war-wounded since the start of the war.
David Ellison (41), son of billionaire Larry Ellison, a young Jew and successful businessman in his own right, has offered to buy National Amusements, the Korff family's holding company, to take over Paramount Global, the media giant that owns MTV and Nickelodeon. As part of the deal, Ellison is in discussions with Paramount about merging his film and television studios, Skydance Media, into a larger media company after completing the purchase.
The deal is valued at $8 billion, and according to economic experts, the merger of the companies will lead to the creation of a media giant that will significantly impact the US media market.
Korff and Ellison grew up in families that hold economic empires but created independent and dominant business worlds that have now culminated in a major deal. "This is the next generation of global Jewish leadership," says a source familiar with the details. "These two young men love Israel, are connected to their Judaism, they have Zionist values, and it is very encouraging to see that in such successful families, the values are passed on to the younger generations. Both secretly donate a lot to the State of Israel and the IDF. It is a positive message to the Jewish world that Korff and Ellison are the next generation of global Jewish leadership, connected to Israel and upholding Zionist values."
Shifra Shahar, CEO of the Warm Home for Every Soldier Association, said: "I would like to thank a very special donor who, amid all the difficulties of the ongoing war, found it important to host a Shabbat meal with lone soldiers in appreciation for everything they do for us. The soldiers enjoyed it so much, both the meal and the gesture from an overseas donor, and it was so important for them. These days more than ever, the support from the Jewish diaspora is significant and touches the hearts of the soldiers and us. Thank you very much, Brandon."
