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Paramount Escalates WBD Fight, Tells Lawmakers Netflix Deal Is 'Presumptively Unlawful'

Warner Bros. Discovery remains committed to its signed sale to Netflix despite Paramount’s unchanged $30-per-share hostile offer.

Overview

  • Paramount chief legal officer Makan Delrahim told a House Judiciary antitrust subcommittee that a Netflix–WBD combination is presumptively unlawful and would entrench Netflix’s streaming power.
  • Delrahim’s filing attacks Netflix’s market framing, calling the idea that YouTube or TikTok substitute for premium SVOD content “psychedelic antitrust.”
  • WBD’s board has rejected Paramount Skydance’s latest all-cash $30-per-share tender and urged shareholders to support the existing Netflix transaction.
  • Paramount reiterated its $30 bid without raising the price, asserting full financing that includes Larry Ellison’s personal equity guarantee.
  • Both potential deals face extensive multi-jurisdictional review with no role for Congress in approval, the tender runs through Jan. 21, and WBD cites multibillion-dollar break-fee exposure if a Paramount deal collapses.