Aug 8 (Reuters) - Paramount Global ( PARAA ) wrote down

the value of its cable networks by nearly $6 billion Thursday,

in another sign of how significantly the television market has

deteriorated in the era of streaming video.

The impairment reflects the shrinking audience for cable TV

networks like Nickelodeon, MTV and Comedy Central, a decline

that translates to lower advertising revenue. The announcement

comes a day after Warner Bros Discovery took a $9 billion

write-down of its TV assets.

The pending merger with Skydance Media forced Paramount to

re-assess the value of each of its units to better reflect their

worth to the company, resulting in the writedown. The magnitude

of the reconciliation dragged Paramount into an operating loss

of $5.3 billion for the second quarter.

Absent this charge, the media company would have reported an

adjusted operating income of $867 million, or 54 cents a share,

ahead of Wall Street's forecasts of per-share earnings of 12

cents, according to LSEG.

Paramount reported revenue of $6.8 billion, down 11% from

the same period a year ago. That missed analyst forecasts of

$7.2 billion for the quarter ended June 30.

The company's streaming business, which includes the

Paramount+ subscription service and its free, ad-supported

sibling, PlutoTV, posted its first quarterly profit, fueled by

growth in subscription and ad revenue. The direct-to-consumer

unit reported an operating income of $26 million in the second

quarter, versus a loss of $424 million a year ago.

"We are on track to reach domestic profitability for

Paramount+ in 2025," Paramount co-CEOs George Cheeks, Chris

McCarthy and Brian Robbins said in a joint statement.

The television unit, which includes primetime's top-rated

network, CBS, as well as the company's cable networks, reported

quarterly revenue of nearly $4.3 billion. The 17% decline in

revenue from a year ago reflects a lower ad revenue and fees

paid to license its shows. Operating income for the television

group fell 15% to $1 billion.

Paramount's film business reported a loss of $54 million,

despite releases like "IF" topping the box office in its

domestic debut, and "A Quiet Place: Day One" recording the best

financial performance for the horror franchise.

(Reporting by Dawn Chmielewski in Los Angeles; Editing by Anil

D'Silva)