©Courtesy of Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery
Netflix announced today an $82.7 billion deal to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, a move that will have a vast impact on the media industry. Warner’s studio operations and its streaming business are included in the arrangement, which is expected to happen by the third quarter of 2026. Under the terms, each WBD shareholder will receive $23.25 in cash and $4.50 in shares of Netflix common stock for each share of WBD common stock outstanding at the closing of the transaction.
Netflix offered mostly cash in a bidding war with competitors, which also submitted bids this week. Comcast had been trying to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery Studios as well as the HBO Max streaming service, while Paramount had been interested in buying all of Warner’s assets, including the CNN and TNT television channels.
With more than 300 million subscribers, Netflix is the world’s largest paid streaming service. Its acquisition of Warner’s assets would give the company an enormous footprint in the entertainment industry and would likely spur more mergers by smaller companies wishing to remain competitive.
“By adding the deep film and TV libraries and HBO and HBO Max programming, Netflix members will have even more high-quality titles from which to choose,” the company said. “This also allows Netflix to optimize its plans for consumers, enhancing viewing options and expanding access to content.”
The companies issued a statement that said in part, “This acquisition brings together two pioneering entertainment businesses, combining Netflix’s innovation, global reach and best-in-class streaming service with Warner Bros.’ century-long legacy of world-class storytelling. Beloved franchises, shows and movies such as The Big Bang Theory, The Sopranos, Game of Thrones, The Wizard of Oz, and the DC Universe will join Netflix’s extensive portfolio including Wednesday, Money Heist, Bridgerton, Adolescence, and Extraction, creating an extraordinary entertainment offering for audiences worldwide.”
Any deal, however, would need to be approved by antitrust regulators in the United States and Europe. At this point, it is unclear how the Trump administration would view the arrangement. On Thursday, the day before the deal was announced, a group of unnamed film producers expressed to Congress their “grave concerns” about the potential for “monopolistic control.” They wrote: “Netflix views any time spent watching a movie in a theater as time not spent on their platform. They have no incentive to support theatrical exhibition, and they have every incentive to kill it.”
Other groups like the Directors Guild of America and Cinema United, a theater-chain trade association, have expressed reservations about the deal.
But Netflix executives are already making a case that the acquisition is in the public interest. Netflix’s co-chief executive Ted Sarandos was quoted as saying: “In a world where people have so many choices, more choices than ever on how to spend their time, we can’t stand still. We need to keep innovating and investing in stories that matter most to audiences, and that’s what this deal is all about. The combination of Netflix and Warner Bros. creates a better Netflix for the long run.”
Check out other articles by Edward.