Paramount Outbids Netflix in Attempt to Acquire Warner Bros Discovery

Tue Dec 09 2025 10:28:02 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

In a competitive twist, Paramount Skydance makes a direct offer surpassing Netflix's bid for Warner Bros Discovery, aiming for a significant merger in the entertainment industry.

Paramount Skydance has launched a rival bid to acquire Warner Bros Discovery, offering $30 per share. This proposal comes as a response to Netflix’s attempt to take over the company, with Paramount framing its offer as better for shareholders and containing regulatory clearance advantages. The struggle between these two media giants highlights the intense competition in the streaming landscape, leading to questions about the future of both entities.

Paramount Skydance has made another offer to buy Warner Bros Discovery as it seeks to trump a rival plan from Netflix to buy the company's studio and streaming networks.

Paramount, which is backed by the billionaire Ellison family, said it was making a direct offer to shareholders of $30 (£22.50) per share to scoop up the whole of Warner Bros, including its traditional television networks.

It said its proposal was a superior alternative to Netflix's, delivering more cash upfront to shareholders and greater prospect of approval by regulators.

President Donald Trump has said there could be a problem with Netflix's purchase, pointing to competition concerns given the size of the companies.

Paramount is a smaller player than Netflix that is known for brands such as CBS News, Nickelodeon, and Mission Impossible. It started submitting offers a few months ago, eventually prompting Warner Bros, owner of HBO and classics from Looney Tunes to Harry Potter, to formally open a bidding process.

Wall Street analysts have long believed a Paramount-Warner Bros combination makes sense, giving the company scale to compete against Netflix and Disney.

Paramount's offer values the entire company at $108.4bn, presenting what it claims to be a better deal. Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is among the financial partners Paramount is working with as part of the deal, according to paperwork submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Netflix executives expressed confidence in their plans, dismissing Paramount's attempt as entirely expected, while Warner Bros stated it would review the offer but was not currently changing its recommendation.

Both potential takeovers are expected to face scrutiny from competition regulators in the US and Europe, as analysts predict that Netflix's plan may raise concerns about dominance in streaming, while Paramount's proposal could lead to advertising impact reviews.

In remarks about the strategy, Paramount's CEO David Ellison stated that Netflix's acquisition would give too much power to one firm in Hollywood and warned of the adverse effects of Warner Bros' plan to spin off its traditional networks into an independent company.

As both companies vie for dominance, the outcome of this bidding war could reshape the future of the entertainment landscape.