Today, Netflix announced our acquisition of Warner Bros. Together, we’ll define the next century of storytelling, creating an extraordinary entertainment offering for audiences everywhere. https://t.co/rXPFMNIs1A pic.twitter.com/0pdsMUEob8
— netflix⁷ (@netflix) December 5, 2025
Netflix announced Friday it’s reached a deal to buy pieces of Warner Bros. Discovery,
bringing a swift end to a dramatic bidding process that saw Paramount Skydance
and Comcast also vying for the legacy assets.
The transaction is comprised of cash and stock and is valued at $27.75 per WBD share, the companies said. That puts the equity value of the deal at $72 billion, with a total enterprise value of approximately $82.7 billion.
Netflix will acquire Warner Bros.′ film studio and streaming service, HBO Max. Warner Bros. Discovery will move forward with its previously planned spinout of Discovery Global, which includes its massive portfolio of pay TV networks, such as TNT and CNN.
The blockbuster deal brings together the streaming giant Netflix, which has upended the media industry in recent years, and the storied Warner Bros. film studio, known for its library including “The Wizard of Oz,” the Harry Potter franchise and the DC comics universe. It will also include the content of HBO Max, including “The Sopranos” and “Game of Thrones.”
“I know some of you’re surprised that we’re making this acquisition, and I certainly understand why. Over the years, we have been known to be builders, not buyers,” Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said on an investor call Friday morning.
“We already have incredible shows and movies and a great business model, and it’s working for talent, it’s working for consumers and it’s working for shareholders. This is a rare opportunity,” he said. “It’s going to help us achieve our mission to entertain the world and to bring people together through great stories.”
https://www.cnbc.com/2025/12/05/neflix-warner-bros-discovery-deal.html
Netflix announced plans on Friday to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery’s studio and streaming business, in a deal that will send shock waves through Hollywood and the broader media landscape.
The cash-and-stock deal values the business at $82.7 billion, including debt. The acquisition is expected to close after Warner Bros. Discovery carves out its cable unit, which the companies expected be completed by the third quarter of 2026. That means there will be a separate public company controlling channels like CNN, TNT and Discovery.
Netflix is already the world’s largest paid streaming service, with more than 300 million subscribers. Bulking up with Warner Bros. Discovery assets would create a colossus with greater leverage over theater owners and entertainment-industry unions. It could force smaller companies to merge as they scramble to compete.
The acquisition would also complete the conquest of Hollywood by tech insurgents. Instead of acquiring studios, tech companies have mostly grown under their own steam in Hollywood. In 2022, Amazon closed its $8.5 billion acquisition of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, home to James Bond and Rocky franchises.
Paramount Skydance chief David Ellison met with Trump officials and key lawmakers in Washington DC on Wednesday to press his case against Warner Bros. Discovery’s potential selection of Netflix as its merger partner – even as the streaming giant submitted a higher offer in the latest round of bidding, The Post has learned.
Netflix has submitted a bid valued at $28 a share – edging past a Paramount Skydance bid for the entire company valued in the $26 to $27 range, a source close to the situation told The Post. It’s unclear where the bidding for Thursday’s third-round bidding stands, but officials at Paramount Skydance are arguing that even at a higher level, Netflix’s offer must be discounted because of the uncertainty it brings.
The DC visit comes amid mounting pessimism from Paramount Skydance about its bid; senior executives believe the WBD is inclined to nix its offer in favor of Netflix despite the latter’s regulatory hurdles, as first reported by the Post. As reported, Paramount Skydance signaled in multiple letters this week that it could go hostile with its offer for WBD – arguing that the Netflix deal poses unacceptable risks for WBD shareholders.
Why the Battle for Warner Bros. Discovery May Not Be Over Yet
Netflix struck a deal to buy one of Hollywood’s most storied studios. But a scorned rival, and the Trump administration, may put up a fight.