On Friday, the board of Warner Bros. But of course the weekend later, the conspiracy passed: The CEO of Skydance Deo David Ellison came out approaching with a big proposal, all the money to buy all the assets of wbd for $ 108.4 billion (or $ 30 a share). Speaking directly to WBD shareholders, Young Experience said Paramoous will serve as a better home for WBD and help preserve Hollywood’s legacy.
Ellison’s bid mainly includes TV networks WBD-CNN, TBS, TNT and others – who do not want. The proposal is reportedly supported in part by Ellison’s father, Oracle Founder Larry Ellison, and red-capital partners, which also financed Skydance Media’s $8 billion acquisition of Paramount Global that closed in August.
In an interview with CNBC’s The squawk box Today (DECED 8), Ellison called the Netflix acquisition “Hollywood’s bad value” and argued that Paramount’s offer would be better for customers and the industry. “As someone who has spent the last 15 years of my life producing movies and television shows, this is an industry that I love, and we are the current moment in our business, and we believe in what we offer,” he said.
Before the Fray was introduced, much of the chatter focused on what the supposed Netflix Takeover would mean for the future of entertainment. Hollywood groups — including sag-aftra, the WGA and other groups — began looking for ways to block the merger. Their concerns stem from the fear that some mergers will lead to job losses and loss of income, reduced competition and creative freedom. There are also worries about the theater business, given Netflix co-CEED’s long-standing belief that watching movies in theaters is “obsolete.”
Several politicians are also raising red flags. Senator Elizabeth Warren called the proposed Netflix-WBD merger a “Nightmare” that could lead to “higher subscription rates and fewer decisions.” President Donald Trump is skeptical about the deal.
Ellison argues that the Paramount deal could reduce non-disruptive concerns and actually increase competition by pairing Paramount + with WBD’s HAX Max to rival Netflix and Disney. The Netflix streaming service and WBD streaming would create one of the largest platforms in the industry and almost renew a deep antitrust review. Netflix has over 300 million subscribers, while WBD streaming services have 128 million. In contrast, Paramount + has only 79 million. The paramount integration will face a smooth control process due to its small scale.
Some analysts think that ellisons’ closing commitments to Trump could give it a huge advantage with regulators. As they made the bid, Ellison said he had ‘great conversations’ with the president, although he insisted he ‘doesn’t want to talk about the President.’
At the time, despite Trump’s skepticism about the Netflix-WBD merger due to concerns about Market Poinance, he referred to Netflix CO-CEO Sarandos as “a good man” and “a great person.” “
As of Monday afternoon, WBD said it would review Paramount’s offer and make a decision within 10 days. In a statement, the Board emphasized that it “does not change its recommendation regarding the agreement with Netflix.” Because WBD has already signed the deal, it would owe $2.8 billion in dividends if it accepted Paramount’s BID instead. Netflix, for its part, will have to pay a $5.8 billion settlement fee
