ZAP // yousafbhutta / Pixabay; WBD; HBO Max; Paramount Skydance
The media war is at an all-time high. After Warner Bros / HBO reached an agreement with Netflix on Friday for the sale of its main assets to the streaming giant, this Monday Paramount counterattacked and made a hostile offer for Warner’s shares.
Paramount Skydance launched a hostile bid for 108.4 billion of dollars by Warner Bros Discovery, in a last attempt to overcome Netflix, and create a media giant capable of challenging the streaming platform’s current leadership.
Last Friday, Netflix had pulled out a weeks-long deal with Paramount and Comcast, securing a full 83 billion dollars in equity and equity for Warner Bros. Discovery’s television, film studio and streaming assets.
As part of Friday’s operation, the streaming giant may have some of WBD’s most valuable assetsincluding its film and television studio, HBO and the platform HBO Max.
But Paramount’s new onslaught means the fight for Warner Bros. and its coveted assets is far from resolved.
Netflix’s proposal includes a termination compensation of 5.8 billion of dollars and must face a strong antitrust scrutiny.
The President of the USA, Donald Trump, raised doubts about the offer during the weekend. The deal has already drawn sharp criticism from congressmen from both parties and Hollywood unions, concerned about the possibility of job cuts and price increases for consumers.
The acquisition, the largest in the entertainment sector Since Disney purchased Fox for $71 billion in 2019, it has been generate controversy in the cinematographic world. James Camerondirector of “Titanic”, classified the purchase as “a disaster”while a group of some of Hollywood’s top producers is putting pressure on Congress to oppose the deal.
“I couldn’t imagine a most effective way to reduce competition in Hollywood than selling WBD to Netflix,” he wrote Jason Kilarformer CEO of Warner, on his profile on X.
Mass Paramount’s proposal is also expected to be subject to strong scrutiny. A Paramount–Warner Bros combination would reinforce its dominant position in the studio business, something that, in the eyes of many, could also translate into job losses in a sector undergoing rapid consolidation.
According to the agency, which cites sources familiar with the process, Paramount had raised its proposal on Thursday to $30 per share for the entire company, but that the Warner Bros. board of directors had reservations about the financing model.
Since September, Paramount has presented successive proposals to create an entertainment group able to take on Netflix and tech giants like Apple, which expanded into the media, but were not successful.
The producer continues to be one of the great studios Hollywood, but its box office performance has been uneven, with some franchise successes to be compensated for periods in which your poster was behind Disney’sUniversal and Warner Bros in market share in the USA.
Paramount, which sent a letter to Warner questioning the sales process and alleging that the company abandoned a fair competition processhaving predetermined Netflix’s victory, is held by Larry Ellisonone of the richest men in the world and a close ally of President Donald Trump,
The company is led by David EllisonLarry’s son, who some analysts predict could come to directly pressure the White House to block the merger between Netflix and Warner Bros, with the argument that the operation would reduce competition in the sector.
In an interview this Monday, David Ellison stated that there was a “inherent bias” against your company in the bidding process. “We will be the largest investor in this business. We are here today precisely because we are fighting for our shareholders and also for the shareholders of Warner Bros Discovery.”
Some analysts and industry experts see Paramount Skydance as the candidate best positioned to acquire Warner Bros Discoverytaking into account the Ellison’s strong financial ability – supported by his father, co-founder of Oracle and second richest man in the world.
According to analysts at , the company resulting from the merger of Netflix and Warner would have significant overlapsand their combined streaming revenues they could even retreatunless Netflix doubled the prices or maintain separate platforms – scenarios that the investment house does not consider likely.
However, Morningstar analysts point out, both Netflix’s and Paramout’s offer are higher than what they consider to be Warner’s independent value.
According to some analysts, Netflix’s main motivation is to guarantee exclusive, long-term control over top-notch intellectual property and reduce the dependence on external studiosat a stage in which it is expanding into video games, live entertainment and broader consumer ecosystems.
Access to Warner Bros. Discovery’s vast portfolio of franchises would give Netflix immediate credibility, greater audience reach and strong merchandising potential for its ambitions in video games, a segment in which it is still building original content and brand awareness.
