Paramount seems poised to own Warner Bros. Discovery as the long-discussed merger finds a new twist in this story. Folks are wondering if this is the end of the line for WBD after Paramount Skydance’s offer was recommended by the Warner Bros. board yesterday. The David Ellison-owned company raised its bid to buy the rival entertainment giant to $31/share. It was all cash and Netflix had a week to match it. Well, the red streaming service said no thanks and now, here we are!
Ellison sure thinks this thing is a done deal. Honestly, you can see how he would feel that way in the face of everything that’s transpired with this merger. Netflix really did seem to have a hold on it. But, in the end, all that money now has them in pole position. I would caution against any doom and gloom at this juncture though. A merger of this size is going to take a long time to complete through courts and regulatory bodies. (Here’s a fun bit of kit, the letter announcing Netlfix’s acquisition of WBD is still up on their press site!)
