Clash of the titans Paramount and Netflix in fight for Warners

Warner Bros Discovery, the entertainment giant behind the storied Hollywood movie studios, HBO, CNN and other media businesses, is at the centre of one of the most extraordinary corporate takeover fights in recent memory.

- Lauren Aratani New York Jeremy Barr Washington

After Netflix announced a $82.7bn (£62bn) deal on Friday to acquire WBD’s studio and HBO, David Ellison, chief executive of Paramount Skydance and son of tech billionaire Larry, announced a rival $108.4bn hostile bid to take over the entire company.

Here’s what we know so far and what could happen next.

What are the two proposals for Warner Bros Discovery?

Netflix’s offer would see it take control of the Warner Bros studios, which includes popular film franchises such as Harry Potter and DC Comics; HBO, home to hit series including Succession and The White Lotus; and its HBO Max streaming service. The deal would not include WBD’s cable channels, from CNN to Discovery, which would be spun off into a separate company next year.

Both WBD and Netflix reached agreement over this deal, in which investors in WBD would receive $23.25 in cash and $4.50 in Netflix stock for each share they own.

Paramount, by contrast, is bidding for all of WBD, from Hogwarts and HGTV to CNN and Cartoon Network. Under its all-cash deal WBD investors would receive $30 for each of their shares in WBD.

What is a hostile bid and why is that Paramount's strategy?

While Ellison has made several proposals to take over WBD during a closed-door bidding process, these were rejected by its board. A hostile bid means he is appealing directly to WBD’s shareholders to get the company to take his offer.

Ellison’s case for shareholders is clear: he’s offering more money for each share than Netflix, is willing to take on the entire company, including its struggling linear television networks, and believes his company has a much higher chance of getting the deal approved by government regulators.

Why did the WBD board decline Paramount’s offers?