Overview
- Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery announced a definitive agreement for the studios, HBO and HBO Max valued at about $82.7 billion including debt, excluding cable networks that WBD plans to spin off before closing.
- Paramount Skydance unveiled a hostile all-cash $30-per-share tender for the entire company, valuing WBD at roughly $108.4 billion and positioning its bid as faster and more certain than Netflix’s $27.75-per-share asset deal.
- President Donald Trump said the combined market share from a Netflix–Warner Bros. tie-up "could be a problem" and that he will be involved in the decision, following his mid-November meeting with Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos.
- The Netflix agreement is expected to undergo intensive antitrust scrutiny by the Justice Department and international regulators, as Hollywood unions and theater owners warn of risks to jobs, prices and theatrical distribution.
- Deal terms include a $5.8 billion termination fee payable if the Netflix transaction fails, and news reports describe a large bridge financing facility that helped support Netflix’s winning bid.