The Warner Bros. water tower is seen at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, Calif., Dec. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
By Wyatte Grantham-Philips, Business Writer
NEW YORK (AP) --
Warner Bros. Discovery says it’s reviewing a new takeover offer from Paramount but it continues to recommend a competing offer from Netflix to its shareholders.
Warner disclosed Tuesday that it had received a revised proposal after a seven-day window to renew talks with Paramount elapsed on Monday.
Skydance-owned Paramount confirmed that it had submitted a revised proposal, but did not provide further details on the latest bid. The company was widely expected to have raised its offer price.
A Warner Bros. Discovery buyout would reshape Hollywood and the wider media landscape — bringing HBO Max, cult-favorite titles like “Harry Potter” and, depending on who wins the Netflix v. Paramount tug-a-war, potentially even CNN under a new roof.
Paramount wants to acquire Warner Bros. in its entirety — including networks like CNN and Discovery — and went straight to shareholders with an all-cash, $77.9 billion hostile offer just days after the Netflix deal was announced. Accounting for debt, it previously offered Warner stakeholders $30 per share, amounting to an enterprise value of around $108 billion.
Netflix only wants to buy Warner’s studio and streaming business for $72 billion, or about $83 billion including debt.
REGISTRATION REQUIRED to access this page.
Already registered?
LOGIN
Don't have an account?
REGISTER
Registration is FREE and FAST.
The limited access duration has come to an end. (Access was allowed until: 2026-02-26)
Video Description
Warner Bros. Discovery says it’s reviewing a new takeover offer from Paramount, but it continues to recommend a competing proposal from Netflix to its shareholders in the meantime.
Warner disclosed Tuesday that it had received a revised offer from Paramount after a seven-day window to renew talks with the Skydance-owned company elapsed Monday. Paramount confirmed it had submitted this proposal, but neither provided further details on the bid. The company was widely expected to have raised its offer.
A Warner Bros. Discovery buyout would reshape Hollywood and the wider media landscape — bringing HBO Max, cult-favorite titles like “Harry Potter” and, depending on who wins the Netflix v. Paramount tug-a-war, potentially even CNN under a new roof.
Paramount wants to acquire Warner Bros. in its entirety — including networks like CNN and Discovery — and went straight to shareholders with an all-cash, $77.9 billion hostile offer just days after the Netflix deal was announced in December. Accounting for debt, that bid offered Warner stakeholders $30 per share, amounting to an enterprise value of around $108 billion.
Paramount maintained on Tuesday that its tender offer remains on the table while Warner evaluates its latest proposal.
Netflix only wants to buy Warner’s studio and streaming business for $72 billion in cash, or about $83 billion including debt. Warner’s board has repeatedly backed this deal — and on Tuesday maintained that its agreement with Netflix still stands.
A press contact for Netflix did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Warner shareholders are set to vote on the Netflix proposal on March 20.
If Warner’s board changes course and deems Paramount’s latest offer superior, Netflix would have a chance to match or revise its proposal, potentially setting the stage for a fresh bidding war. It could also choose to walk away.
Paramount, Warner and Netflix have spent the last couple of months in a heated back and forth over who has a stronger deal. But along the way, lawmakers and entertainment trade groups have sounded the alarm, warning that either buyout of all or parts of Warner’s business would only further consolidate power in an industry already run by just a few major players. Critics say that could result in job losses, less diversity in filmmaking and potentially more headaches for consumers who are facing rising costs of streaming subscriptions as is.
Combined, that raises tremendous antitrust concerns — and a Warner sale could come down to who gets the regulatory greenlight. The U.S. Department of Justice has already initiated reviews, and other countries are expected to do so.
Both Paramount and Netflix have argued that their proposals are good for consumers and the wider industry. And the companies have taken aim at each other publicly with regulatory arguments.
Paramount has pointed to Netflix’s much larger market value. And it’s argued that if the streaming giant acquires Warner, it would only give it more dominance in the subscription video on demand space. But Netflix is trying to convince regulators that it’s up against broader video libraries, particularly Google’s YouTube. Netflix has also claimed that since it doesn’t currently have the same studios and film distribution that Warner does, it would preserve and grow those operations — whereas a Warner-Paramount merger would combine two of Hollywood’s last five major studios, as well as theatrical channels and news networks (putting Warner’s CNN under the same roof as Paramount’s CBS).
Politics could also come into play. President Donald Trump previously made unprecedented suggestions about his involvement in seeing a deal through, before walking back those statements and maintaining that regulatory approval will be up to the Justice Department.
Meta and YouTube must pay millions in damages to a 20-year-old woman after a jury decided the social media giant and video streamer designed their platforms to hook young users without concern for their well being.
The California jury's decision Wednesday in a first-of-its-kind lawsuit could influence the outcome of thousands of similar lawsuits accusing social media companies of deliberately causing harm.
The plaintiff, known by her initials KGM, testified at trial that she became addicted to social media as a child and that this addiction exacerbated her mental health struggles. After more than 40 hours of deliberations, a majority of jurors agreed and awarded her $3 million in damages.
Jurors later recommended an additional $3 million in punitive damages after deciding the companies acted with malice, oppression or fraud in harming children with their platforms. The judge has final say over how much damages are awarded.
It's the second verdict against Meta this week, after a jury in New Mexico determined the company harms children's mental health and safety, in violation of state law.
Meta, the parent of Instagram and Facebook, and Google-owned YouTube issued statements disagreeing with the verdict and vowed to explore their legal options, which include appeals.
Google spokesperson Jose Castañeda said the verdict misrepresents YouTube "which is a responsibly built streaming platform, not a social media site." A Meta spokesperson said teen mental health is "profoundly complex and cannot be linked to a single app."
Peter Ormerod, an associate professor of law at Villanova University, called the verdict "a momentous development" but noted it's just "one step in a much longer saga" and that he doesn't expect to see large changes to the platforms... Read More
Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.