Warner Bros (WBD) Stock: Netflix Beats Paramount and Comcast in Bidding War
TLDR
- Netflix entered exclusive negotiations to buy Warner Bros. Discovery’s studios and HBO Max for $28 per share in a mostly cash deal
- The streaming company is offering a $5 billion breakup fee if regulators block the transaction
- Warner Bros. stock rose 4.3% premarket while Netflix fell 0.6% on the announcement
- Netflix beat competing bids from Paramount Skydance and Comcast to win exclusive negotiating rights
- The deal faces antitrust scrutiny from US and European regulators with concerns already raised by California and Utah lawmakers
Netflix has locked down exclusive talks to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery’s film and TV studios plus HBO Max. The deal is priced at $28 per share, mostly in cash.
Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc., WBD
The streaming leader is putting up a $5 billion breakup fee if regulators kill the transaction. That safety net helped Netflix beat out Paramount and Comcast for exclusive negotiating rights.
Warner Bros. stock jumped 4.3% in premarket trading Friday. Netflix shares slipped 0.6%. The deal could be announced within days if talks stay on track.
Warner Bros. will spin off cable channels like CNN, TBS, and TNT before closing the sale. The company put itself up for sale in October after fielding interest from multiple buyers.
Netflix Goes Big
This marks the largest acquisition attempt in Netflix history. The company built its $437 billion market value without owning a major studio. It licensed content from others, then invested heavily in original programming.
The purchase would give Netflix ownership of HBO and its show library. Warner Bros. assets include the Burbank studios and a huge film and TV archive. A combined company would control about 450 million subscribers.
Paramount CEO David Ellison started the bidding war with unsolicited offers. His company later accused Warner Bros. of running an unfair process favoring Netflix. A December 3 letter from Paramount lawyers called the auction “tainted.”
Paramount argued its bid had a better chance with regulators. Netflix’s $28 per share offer beats Paramount’s earlier bid of roughly $24 per share.
Regulatory Roadblocks
The deal faces serious antitrust questions in the US and Europe. California Republican Darrell Issa wrote regulators opposing any Netflix transaction. He warned it could hurt consumers.
Utah Senator Mike Lee raised similar concerns this week. Netflix counters that YouTube is a major competitor. The company claims the deal would lower consumer prices through bundling.
Bloomberg Intelligence analysts say the bid implies a $75 billion equity valuation. The massive subscriber base will trigger regulatory scrutiny. Netflix finished 2024 with $39 billion in revenue. Warner Bros. had more than $39 billion in sales.
Hollywood Reacts
The entertainment industry is watching nervously. Netflix rarely gives films theatrical releases. The company occasionally does limited cinema runs for original movies.
Traditional TV is shrinking fast as viewers switch to streaming. Warner Bros. cable division saw revenue drop 23% last quarter. Subscribers are canceling and advertisers are moving elsewhere.
Warner Bros. iconic content would help Netflix stay ahead of Disney and Paramount. The deal represents different entertainment eras merging. Netflix launched as a DVD rental service almost three decades ago. Warner Bros. was founded in the 1920s.
Netflix’s $5 billion breakup fee shows serious commitment to closing the deal despite regulatory hurdles ahead.
The post Warner Bros (WBD) Stock: Netflix Beats Paramount and Comcast in Bidding War appeared first on Blockonomi.
You May Also Like
US Prosecutors Seek 12-Year Prison for Do Kwon Over Terra Collapse
Highlights: US prosecutors requested a 12-year prison sentence for Do Kwon after the Terra collapse. Terraform’s $40 billion downfall caused huge losses and sparked a long downturn in crypto markets. Do Kwon will face sentencing on December 11 and must give up $19 million in earnings. US prosecutors have asked a judge to give Do Kwon, Terraform Labs co-founder, a 12-year prison sentence for his role in the remarkable $40 billion collapse of the Terra and Luna tokens. The request also seeks to finalize taking away Kwon’s criminal earnings. The court filing came in New York’s Southern District on Thursday. This is about four months after Kwon admitted guilt on two charges: wire fraud and conspiracy to defraud. Prosecutors said Kwon caused more losses than Samuel Bankman-Fried, Alexander Mashinsky, and Karl Sebastian Greenwood combined. U.S. prosecutors have asked a New York federal judge to sentence Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon to 12 years in prison, calling his role in the 2022 TerraUSD collapse a “colossal” fraud that triggered broader crypto-market failures, including the downfall of FTX. Sentencing is… — Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) December 5, 2025 Terraform Collapse Shakes Crypto Market Authorities explained that Terraform’s collapse affected the entire crypto market. They said it helped trigger what is now called the ‘Crypto Winter.’ The filing stressed that Kwon’s conduct harmed many investors and the broader crypto world. On Thursday, prosecutors said Kwon must give up just over $19 million. They added that they will not ask for any additional restitution. They said: “The cost and time associated with calculating each investor-victim’s loss, determining whether the victim has already been compensated through the pending bankruptcy, and then paying out a percentage of the victim’s losses, will delay payment and diminish the amount of money ultimately paid to victims.” Authorities will sentence Do Kwon on December 11. They charged him in March 2023 with multiple crimes, including securities fraud, market manipulation, money laundering, and wire fraud. All connections are tied to his role at Terraform. After Terra fell in 2022, authorities lost track of Kwon until they arrested him in Montenegro on unrelated charges and sent him to the U.S. Do Kwon’s Legal Case and Sentencing In April last year, a jury ruled that both Terraform and Kwon committed civil fraud. They found the company and its co-founder misled investors about how the business operated and its finances. Jay Clayton, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, submitted the sentencing request in November. TERRA STATEMENT: “We are very disappointed with the verdict, which we do not believe is supported by the evidence. We continue to maintain that the SEC does not have the legal authority to bring this case at all, and we are carefully weighing our options and next steps.” — Zack Guzmán (@zGuz) April 5, 2024 The news of Kwon’s sentencing caused Terraform’s token, LUNA, to jump over 40% in one day, from $0.07 to $0.10. Still, this rise remains small compared to its all-time high of more than $19, which the ecosystem reached before collapsing in May 2022. In a November court filing, Do Kwon’s lawyers asked for a maximum five-year sentence. They argued for a shorter term partly because he could face up to 40 years in prison in South Korea, where prosecutors are also pursuing a case against him. The legal team added that even if Kwon serves time in the U.S., he would not be released freely. He would be moved from prison to an immigration detention center and then sent to Seoul to face pretrial detention for his South Korea charges. eToro Platform Best Crypto Exchange Over 90 top cryptos to trade Regulated by top-tier entities User-friendly trading app 30+ million users 9.9 Visit eToro eToro is a multi-asset investment platform. The value of your investments may go up or down. Your capital is at risk. Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose all the money you invest. This is a high-risk investment, and you should not expect to be protected if something goes wrong.
ArtGis Finance Partners with MetaXR to Expand its DeFi Offerings in the Metaverse
