Warner Media Pension Plan

There is no standalone investment office. Asset-allocation and manager-selection decisions are made at the Warner Bros. Discovery treasury level. Chief Accounting Officer Lori C. Locke oversees plan financial reporting and compliance. The plan operates as an embedded corporate function rather than a separate fiduciary entity.

No. AT&T acquired Time Warner in 2018, folded the pension assets into its broader benefit structure, then spun out the media business to merge with Discovery in 2022. The pension obligations now sit on Warner Bros. Discovery's balance sheet. Legacy AT&T pension liabilities related to former WarnerMedia employees were likely split or transferred as part of the merger terms.

Electronic Arts acquired Playdemic Limited from the Warner Media Pension Plan in 2021 for $1.4 billion. The transaction demonstrates that the plan holds equity interests in operating subsidiaries directly, not solely through external fund commitments. It also generated a substantial liquidity event that could fund near-term benefit payments or reduce the plan's unfunded liability.

The strategy tags — buyout, distressed debt, and fund of funds — indicate a multi-manager approach using external general partners for most private-market exposure. The direct holding of Playdemic suggests the plan also makes occasional direct equity investments, likely in media-adjacent businesses originated through the parent company's corporate development pipeline.

The plan does not publicly disclose its total assets or funded status. Warner Bros. Discovery reports $39.3 billion in long-term debt as of 2024, and pension obligations are a material but not separately itemized balance-sheet line. Without segment-level disclosure, outside observers cannot determine the plan's precise asset base.

The Vanguard Retirement Savings Trust is a stable-value fund used inside 401(k) defined-contribution plans. Its presence in the plan's holdings suggests the legacy WarnerMedia 401(k) lineup offered a capital-preservation option alongside equity and bond funds. This is separate from the defined-benefit pension pool but administered alongside it.

Lori C. Locke, Chief Accounting Officer of Warner Bros. Discovery, carries plan-level financial oversight responsibility. Shane Johnson serves as the authorized signatory on regulatory filings for the WarnerMedia 401(k) Savings Plan. No dedicated pension investment officer is named in public records.