Netflix quits race for Warner Bros, paving way for a Paramount deal

Netflix has walked away from its planned takeover of Warner Bros Discovery, declining to raise its offer for the media conglomerate’s storied Hollywood studios and streaming business after Warner determined a sweetened rival offer from Paramount Skydance to be “superior”.

- Jeremy Barr and Mark Sweney

In a statement on Thursday, the Netflix co-chief executives Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters said: “At the price required to match Paramount Skydance’s latest offer, the deal is no longer financially attractive.”

In its revised offer, Paramount offered $31 (£23) a share for the company, up from $30; a $7bn regulatory termination fee if the merger is not approved; and a “ticking fee” amounting to about $650m in cash each quarter beginning after September. Netflix was given four business days to beat Paramount's revised offer but quickly decided against doing so.

Sarandos and Peters said: “We believe we would have been strong stewards of Warner Bros’ iconic brands, and that our deal would have strengthened the entertainment industry and preserved and created more production jobs in the US.

“But this transaction was always a ‘nice to have’ at the right price, not a ‘must have’ at any price.”

David Zaslav, the president and chief executive of Warner Bros Discovery, called Netflix “a great company” and praised its leadership.