5 key challenges for Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav as he integrates 3 streaming services

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On Monday, the new CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, David Zaslav, visited the company’s headquarters overlooking the Hudson River before hopping on a plane to meet with CNN’s Washington, DC team. After a stop at Atlanta Tuesday, he’ll appear at a town hall at the Warners lot in Burbank later in the week.

After a year-long listening tour that criss-crossed the globe and involved former Time Warner executives along with some of the most powerful content creators in Hollywood — now comes time for execution.

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“So many of the challenges they face are the same as any two big companies coming together and those are the challenges of mass and the mechanics of the business,” said Mike Bloxham, executive vice president global media and entertainment at Magid. “A lot will depend on how they blend those two cultures.”

Rethinking the theatrical-to-streaming movie window

Former CEO Kilar shattered a lot of glass with an aggressive windowing strategy that put all of the company’s 2021 films, including “Wonder Woman 1984” and “Dune,” on HBO Max the same day they hit cinema screens which were mostly empty because of the pandemic. Zaslav has cultivated theater owners and spoken about his commitment to the box office. But can he keep them happy while also shrinking the window?