CEO pay: Zooming out over the last 50 years

It’s a fresh week and that means a fresh bit of escalation in the ongoing Warner Bros. Discovery merger drama.

At an upcoming meeting, Paramount Skydance plans to “nominate a slate of [WBD] directors who, in accordance with their fiduciary duties, will... enter into a transaction with Paramount,” CEO David Ellison wrote in a letter to WBD shareholders disclosed on Monday.

Ellison also said that Paramount sued WBD in Delaware court in an effort to force the board to disclose “basic information” that will allow shareholders to make an informed decision between Paramount’s offer and one from Netflix. WBD shares dipped about 2% on Monday morning.

The latest update follows Paramount’s move last week to reaffirm — but not raise — its $30-per-share offer for WBD. Some saw that decision as Paramount effectively throwing in the towel on its merger hopes, given that the same deal has been rejected twice by the WBD board and winning over shareholders directly is a difficult process. Monday’s disclosure appears to signal that whether it loses or not, Paramount isn’t going to make Netflix’s acquisition easy.

Ford is wading into the autonomous race against rivals like Tesla and GM.

On Wednesday evening, the Detroit automaker said it plans to introduce “Level 3” eyes-off systems to vehicles being built on its new production platform in Louisville by 2028. The first vehicle planned for the platform is a $30,000 midsize EV truck, planned for 2027.

In an interview with Reuters, Ford Chief EV and Design Officer Doug Field said the tech would not come at the $30,000 price point and would cost extra. Field said the company is still weighing just how much extra, and whether the system should be sold via a subscription model.

According to Ford, the eyes-off and hands-off tech will utilize lidar. Ford shares ticked up slightly in premarket trading on Thursday.

In August, Reuters reported that Ford rival Stellantis had shelved its Level 3 program due to high costs.