Sumner Redstone To Bid Farewell To Viacom Board

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Hidden well into a Definitive Proxy Statement filed on Friday (12/16) by Viacom is one sentence that sets the stage for 93-year-old Sumner Redstone‘s next chapter at the company of which he controls 80% of the voting stake.


“Sumner M. Redstone is chairman emeritus of the company and following our Annual Meeting, Mr. Redstone will continue to participate in meetings of the Board in a non-voting role.”

This means that Redstone is relinquishing his role on the Board of Directors, following its Feb. 6, 2017 get-together.

The move comes following his February 2016 decision to step down as Executive Chairman of CBS Corp. and of Viacom.

The SEC filing shows that during FY2016, Redstone was employed by Viacom through May 20, 2016, and received $1.3 million for his service.

Redstone was up for re-election as a Viacom board member. He is still a voting member of the CBS board, but it is likely that Redstone will shift to a non-voting role there, come April 2017.

It has been a difficult year for Redstone, who was embroiled in court battles and controversy throughout the summer months, putting a dark cloud over Viacom. In July, a Massachusetts judge rejected Redstone’s bid to end a case that tested whether Redstone was mentally competent when he removed Viacom CEO Phillipe Dauman and Viacom board member George Abrams from the trust that will control his majority ownership of Viacom and CBS Corp. when he dies or becomes incapacitated.

 

Dauman exited Viacom in August, when a settlement was reached with Redstone and his daughter, Shari Redstone.

With much of the drama now in the past, Viacom looks to be on solid ground with Ms. Redstone in command and Bob Bakish the able steward who now sits in the CEO chair with the full support of both Shari and Sumner.