*Tyler Perry and Byron Allen are reportedly interested in buying BET (Black Entertainment Television) as Paramount Global explores a potential sale of the asset which includes BET, VH1 and the BET+ streaming service.
“Byron Allen is interested in buying BET, and he will be pursuing the acquisition of the network,” a spokesman for the Allen Media Group said in a statement, Deadline reports.
Perry is a longtime partner with BET which airs many of his shows. Meanwhile, Byron Allen’s Allen Media Group is the largest supplier of first-run syndicated programming for broadcast television stations.
BET was founded by Robert Johnson in 1980 and was acquired by Viacom in 2001 in a deal worth $3 billion.
READ MORE: Tyler Perry Donating $750K to Help Low-Income Elders in Atlanta
Perry’s fans and critics are reacting to news of his interest in buying the network, with one person writing “I sincerely hope Tyler Perry is successful in this effort. That’s exactly where that network belongs which is under his ownership.”
Another commenter added, “Byron Allen and Tyler Perry are both bad options. Paramount needs to sell BET Media to an established streaming service so viewers can continue to watch their shows.”
A third person noted, “This is phenomenal news and I hope he is the purchaser. Robert Johnson should have never sold BET in the first place.”
“I hope Paramount sells to black creators known for making premium content for black audiences like Ava DuVernay, Regina King, or Issa Rae,” wrote another person in the comments section of Deadline’s report.
In related news, Perry is helping low-income seniors stay in their homes amid a rise in property taxes due to his movie studio in Atlanta.
As we reported previously, the elders in the area are “seeing their property taxes jump, and he’s ponying up the difference so they can stay in their homes,” TMZ writes, adding that Perry is “donating $750,000 this year so Atlanta’s low-income seniors aren’t forced out of their homes due to rising property taxes.”
Many longtime residents living on a fixed income have reportedly been displaced since Perry launched his full-service production studio in 2019. The movie mogul reached out to Atlanta mayor Andre Dickens to help keep these people in their homes, according to TMZ.
His donation will reportedly pay off all back property taxes for nearly 300 homes.
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