04:57 PM EDT, 04/29/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Paramount Global ( PARAA ) said late Monday that Bob Bakish is stepping down as chief executive, while the media, streaming and entertainment company reported first-quarter results that rose year-over-year.

Paramount said it has created an "office of the CEO" that plans to accelerate growth by developing popular content and streamlining operations, while continuing to optimize the streaming strategy.

The office of the CEO will be composed of George Cheeks, CEO of CBS, Chris McCarthy, CEO of Showtime and MTV Entertainment Studios and Paramount Media Networks, and Brian Robbins, CEO of Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon.

"The creation of the office of the CEO will enable the company to accelerate growth and strengthen operations," according to a statement from the board. "We look forward to working with George, Chris and Brian as they execute on key initiatives to enhance performance and value creation at Paramount Global ( PARAA )."

Paramount and Skydance Media are inching closer to a potential merger, which could see Skydance CEO David Ellison take over as Paramount chief, CNBC reported last week.

Paramount separately said that revenue increased 6% year over year to $7.69 billion during the three months ended March 31, missing the $7.74 billion consensus on Capital IQ. Adjusted earnings per share rose to $0.62 from $0.09, higher than the average analyst estimate of $0.36.

Direct-to-consumer sales jumped 24% to $1.88 billion, driven by gains across advertising and subscription. Paramount+ added 3.7 million subscribers during the quarter to bring its total membership base to 71 million, compared with 69.7 million modeled by the consensus on Visible Alpha.

TV media revenue edged 1% higher to $5.23 billion amid a 14% gain in advertising tied to the broadcast of Super Bowl LVIII. Sales of Paramount's filmed entertainment business increased 3% to $605 million.

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