• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, Yesterday

Is a content deal on the horizon between the new, debt-heavy Skydance Corp. -- and SpaceX?

Legendary media executive John Malone thinks so -- and believes it will happen soon.

The chairman emeritus of Liberty Media says billionaire Larry Ellison who helped its son David Ellison, CEO of Skydance Corp., could finance his $111 billion media merger with Warner Bros. Discovery and work with SpaceX CEO Elon Musk to make another deal happen -- and that Musk could invest up to $10 billion in Skydance.

That could benefit Musk’s social platform, X, which is now under the SpaceX corporate umbrella.

Malone was instrumental in helping WarnerMedia merge with Discovery Inc. in 2022, alongside CEO David Zaslav.

In return, he believes there will be "content" that goes to Musk -- in connection with his social media platform, X.

Malone, in speaking at the Paley Center International Council Summit this week, didn’t offer specifics over what that might be.

Surely, Skydance Corp. could use the investment to help pay down the company's $80 billion in debt.

Social media platform, X, has had trouble issues, especially around advertising revenue. Not much is known specifically about its financial/advertising health, however, because unlike other social media, it is a private company.

Would some sort of content deal with Skydance’s Paramount and Warner Bros Discovery include current or library TV and movie content? Perhaps that, and more.

X could be a factor when it comes to a "second-screen" experience of sorts. So think about high-profile live sports from CBS including the NFL, college football, and NCAA Tournament basketball.

X has had issues with advertisers -- unlike other social media platforms -- stemming from Musk's sometimes controversial comments and tweets. 

High-interest video content could help lift viewer/user engagement and retain and/or gain new advertisers by boosting video consumption.

To a lesser extent big Skydance Corp. short-content/highlights from its top entertainment brands -- “Mission: Impossible,” “Top Gun”, “Star Trek,” and HBO/HBO Max TV content -- could be a factor.

Malone says a deal is coming, and soon. “I predict, big prediction, that you’ll see a global output deal for Skydance with SpaceX... that before very long you’re gonna see an announcement.”

Is Musk considering a way to expand more into media for X as Skydance is looking to find more high-value investment?