Jan. 22, 2026 "Netflix just sweetened its $72B US bid for Warner Bros. Here's how the deal happened": Today I found this article by Jenna Benchetrit on CBC:
Netflix will pay for Warner Bros. Discovery's streaming and studio division entirely in cash to edge out its rival Paramount — the latest chapter in a months-long saga that, once concluded, could significantly change the global entertainment industry.
The streaming giant announced the move on the same day as its fourth quarter earnings.
The $72-billion US equity value deal, amounting to $27.75 US per share,
"expedites the timeline to a WBD shareholder vote
and provides greater certainty of value
that will be delivered at closing,"
Netflix wrote in a letter to investors on Tuesday.
Netflix and Paramount have been duelling over the deal for months.
While Netflix is vying for the company's studio business and streaming catalogue,
Paramount wants to acquire the entire company — which would include the likes of CNN and the Discovery+ streaming channel.
Geetha Ranganathan, a senior media analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, questioned whether the deal was a "must-have" or a "nice-to-have" for Netflix.
The deal is largely seen as critical for Paramount Skydance under the helm of new CEO David Ellison,
and less so for Netflix,
said Ranganathan.
However, Netflix's subscriber growth has slowed,
worrying investors,
and it's now relying on engagement to boost its value.
To that end, Warner Bros.' deep catalogue — which includes major franchises like
Harry Potter,
TV hits like Friends,
The Sopranos
and Game of Thrones,
and classic films like
Citizen Kane
and Casablanca
— would help Netflix scale its business "dramatically,"
said Ranganathan.
So how did we get here, and what happens next?
Oct. 2025: WBD says it's exploring a sale
Months after Warner Bros. Discovery announced that it will eventually split itself into two companies,
with Warner Bros. handling the studio and film/TV library
and Discovery Global handling properties like CNN and Discovery+,
the company signals mid-month that it's exploring a potential sale of the business.
Paramount's initial bid to buy the entire company for nearly $24 US a share is reportedly rejected.
Around the same time, Netflix misses its third quarter earnings targets thanks to a dispute with Brazilian tax authorities. Investors remain worried about the streaming giant's capacity to sustain long-term growth.
During that earnings call, Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos
— who has long insisted that the streamer is a builder, not a buyer
— says the company would be open to "selective" mergers and acquisitions, but isn't interested in buying legacy media networks.
At the end of the month, reports emerge that Netflix is exploring a bid for Warner Bros., the streaming and studio division of WBD.
Nov. 2025: Netflix vows to release WB films in theatres
Dec. 2025: Netflix's $72B deal & Paramount's hostile bid
Paramount raises its proposed breakup fee (the penalty it pays to WBD in the event that a deal doesn't go through) from $2.1 billion US to $5 billion.
Just a few days later, WBD announces that Netflix will acquire Warner Bros. for a total of $72 billion in cash and stock after its separation from Discovery Global is complete.
U.S. President Donald Trump, who is friendly with the Ellison family, says he'll be involved in a review of the deal.
Members of U.S. Congress and Hollywood unions criticize the deal.
Some politicians call it a "nightmare" for U.S. antitrust regulators,
and unions say it will lead to job cuts,
fewer theatrical releases,
and consolidation of power in the entertainment industry.
Now having been rejected multiple times, Paramount launches a $108.4 billion hostile bid against the wishes of the WBD board of directors and its CEO David Zaslav.
Its bid is reportedly backed by several Middle Eastern investment funds, and temporarily by Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner.
Billionaire Larry Ellison (whose son, David, is the CEO of Paramount) makes a personal guarantee to back the offer.
Jan. 2026: WBD rejects Paramount, supports Netflix
In the new year WBD rejects Paramount's hostile bid and calls on investors to do the same, characterizing it as a risky offer leveraged on borrowed money.
Instead, the company actively encourages shareholders to vote for the Netflix deal.
The two companies have launched a marketing campaign touting the benefits of their partnership.
"The amount of debt that Paramount is going to have to take
in order to support the transaction is going to be staggering,"
a huge risk if the deal goes south, said Ranganathan, the analyst.
"I think that [WBD] just generally think that the Netflix brand is bigger, better. Netflix will be a better steward of their assets, of all their brands, of all the properties," she added.
Last week, Paramount escalated its aggressive pursuit of WBD, suing the company for the details of its deal with Netflix and announcing plans to nominate directors to the WBD board.
What happens next?
With Netflix now offering all-cash, a shareholder vote on the deal will come sooner, said Ranganathan, which is "going to be the drop-dead deadline for Paramount."
"Even if [U.S.] regulators approve it, we don't know what's going to happen after that," the analyst added.
For example, Netflix might find itself in an antitrust conundrum where it's forced to choose between the Warner Bros. film studio and HBO, she said.
"Are they actually going to keep the film business?
Are they going to keep HBO?
There are just so many ifs and buts here,
which is what I think is weighing on the stock and on the sentiment quite a bit."
https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/netflix-warner-bros-mega-deal-merger-paramount-9.7054812
Feb. 17, 2026 "Warner Bros reopens takeover talks with Paramount after receiving a waiver from Netflix": Today I found this article by Michelle Chapman And Wyatte Grantham-Philips on BNN Bloomberg:
NEW YORK (AP) — Warner Bros. Discovery is briefly reopening takeover talks with Skydance-owned Paramount to hear the company’s “best and final” offer, while the Hollywood giant continues to back the studio and streaming deal it struck with Netflix.
In a Tuesday regulatory filing, Warner said it had received a waiver from Netflix to reopen talks with Paramount for the next seven days, or until Monday. Warner said this will allow the companies to
discuss unresolved “deficiencies”
and “clarify certain terms”
of Paramount’s latest bid.
But in the meantime, Warner’s board is still recommending shareholders support of its proposed merger with Netflix. A special meeting is now scheduled for Friday, March 20 to hold a vote on that deal.
In a statement, Netflix said it was confident that its proposed transaction “provides superior value and certainty”
— but recognized “the ongoing distraction for WBD stockholders and the broader entertainment industry caused by PSKY’s antics.”
The streaming giant noted it had granted Warner a seven-day waiver to “finally resolve this matter.”
Warner’s leadership similarly reiterated its support for the Netflix deal.
Meanwhile, Paramount called Tuesday’s actions from Warner’s board “unusual” and said the company could have determined whether Paramount’s offer was superior without a timed deadline.
Still, Paramount said it was “nonetheless prepared to engage in good faith and constructive discussions.”
Paramount added that it will continue to advance its tender offer priced at US$30 per share, which it maintained was better than Netflix’s proposal, while also pursuing a proxy fight.
The battle for Warner Bros. Discovery is complicated because Netflix and Paramount want different things.
In December, Netflix agreed to buy Warner’s studio and streaming business for US$72 billion,
now in an all-cash transaction that would cover its legacy TV and movie production arms,
as well as HBO Max.
Including debt, the enterprise value of the deal is about US$83 billion,
or US$27.75 per share, and would be finalized after Warner completes a previously-announced separation of its cable operations.
Meanwhile, unlike Netflix,
Paramount wants to acquire Warner’s entire company
— including networks like CNN and Discovery
— and went straight to shareholders with an all-cash, US$77.9 billion hostile offer just days after the Netflix deal was announced.
The enterprise value of Paramount’s bid currently stands around US$108 billion including debt, or $30 per share.
But Warner disclosed Tuesday that a Paramount representative separately informed the company it would up its offer to US$31 per share “pending engagement.”
Analysts at Raymond James said they had “long believed” Paramount was willing to raise its offer “and now it seems we are finally moving in that direction.”
If Paramount were to up its price to US$32 or US$33 per share, they noted it would be “increasingly difficult to argue the Netflix agreement is superior,” although Netflix could then move to match the bid.
“Netflix is still in the driver’s seat, but now having to make its case,” the analysts added in a Tuesday research note.
Paramount has made more attempts to sweeten its offer recently. Last week, the company said it would pay Warner shareholders an added
“ticking fee” if its deal doesn’t go through by the end of the year
— amounting to 25 cents per share, or a total of US$650 million, for every quarter after Dec. 31.
Paramount also pledged to fund Warner’s proposed US$2.8 billion breakup payout to Netflix under its merger agreement.
The company has been scrambling to solidify more shareholder support. Paramount has extended its tender offer three times, with the latest deadline set for March 2.
According to company disclosures, more than 42.3 million Warner shares had been “validly tendered and not withdrawn” from its hostile bid as of the start of last week,
down from over 168.5 million Warner shares on Jan. 21
— still a small fraction of Warner’s 2.48 billion shares outstanding in series A common stock.
But also last week, one activist investor, Ancora Holdings, publicly expressed opposition to Warner’s proposed merger with Netflix.
And beyond its tender offer, Paramount has also promised a proxy fight. On Tuesday, the company reiterated plans to nominate its own slate of directors at Warner’s upcoming annual meeting.
What, if anything, changes after the next seven days of talks has yet to be seen. Paramount, Warner and Netflix have spent the last couple of months in a heated back and forth over who has a stronger deal on the table.
The prospect of a Warner sale to either company has raised tremendous antitrust concerns from lawmakers worldwide,
who are calling on regulators to carefully scrutinize a merger of this size.
The U.S. Department of Justice has already initiated its reviews, and other countries may also scrutinize either deal.
Both Paramount and Netflix have said they received securities clearance from German authorities last month.
Shares of Warner Bros. Discovery rose more than three per cent in Tuesday trading.
Paramount Skydance climbed over five per cent, while Netflix’s stock inched up slightly.
Michelle Chapman And Wyatte Grantham-Philips, The Associated Press
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