Overview
- Netflix holds a board‑recommended definitive agreement to acquire Warner Bros. studios and HBO/HBO Max for roughly $72 billion in equity (about $82.7 billion enterprise value) at $27.75 per share, contingent on spinning off Discovery Global.
- Paramount Skydance launched a hostile all‑cash $30‑per‑share tender for the entire company, including cable networks, with the offer open through Jan. 8 and shareholder withdrawal rights in place.
- Analysts characterize Paramount’s proposal as a cleaner, lower‑risk path, and investor Mario Gabelli said he is highly likely to tender his clients’ shares to the cash bid.
- Both bids face intensive U.S. antitrust review and political scrutiny, with President Trump saying he would be involved and unions and lawmakers warning about market concentration and potential harms to workers and consumers.
- Netflix executives said they did not assign value to Warner Bros. Games in their model and plan significant debt financing, with any transaction expected to undergo 12–18 months of regulatory review.