ViacomCBS weighing options for CNET

ViacomCBS Inc. is weighing options for CNET after receiving takeover interest in the tech product review site, reports Ed Hammond and Nabila Ahmed.

Hammond and Ahmed report, “A number of potential suitors contacted ViacomCBS about the unit after Chief Executive Officer Bob Bakish said he’s looking to offload non-core assets following a merger with CBS Corp. last year, the people said, asking not to be identified as the matter is private. Bakish continues to assess options for a number of businesses and hasn’t made a decision on a sale of CNET, the people said.

“A representative for ViacomCBS declined to comment.

“CBS bought CNET for $1.8 billion in 2008, adding sites such as TV.com and GameSpot.com. CNET’s value is likely to have shrunk since then, the people said. CNET provides consumer electronics product reviews and news.”

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Chris Roush

Chris Roush was the dean of the School of Communications at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Connecticut. He was previously Walter E. Hussman Sr. Distinguished Professor in business journalism at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is a former business journalist for Bloomberg News, Businessweek, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Tampa Tribune and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. He is the author of the leading business reporting textbook "Show me the Money: Writing Business and Economics Stories for Mass Communication" and "Thinking Things Over," a biography of former Wall Street Journal editor Vermont Royster.