Netflix Signs Deal to Acquire Warner Bros. Discovery Studios and HBO for $82.7 Billion

Overview

• Both boards approved a cash-and-stock agreement valuing WBD at $27.75 per share, or about $72 billion in equity and $82.7 billion including debt.
• Terms provide roughly $23.25 in cash plus about $4.50 in Netflix shares per WBD share, with an estimated 12–18 month closing window.
• Completion is conditional on the spin-off of WBD’s Global Networks unit into a separate company, a step targeted for the third quarter of 2026.
• Netflix outbid Paramount/Skydance and Comcast, while Paramount has formally complained that the sale process favored Netflix.
• Reports cite a $5 billion reverse termination fee if regulators block the deal; Netflix projects $2–3 billion in annual cost savings by year three and says Warner’s operations, including theatrical releases and HBO/HBO Max, will continue as antitrust scrutiny begins in the U.S. and abroad.