Paramount Pushes Warner Bros. Bid Amid Losses
Paramount Skydance Corp. is intensifying efforts to acquire Warner Bros., a move that would significantly reshape the Hollywood studio landscape. The bid comes as the company reported widening fourth-quarter losses, though it simultaneously topped analyst profit outlooks due to cost controls.
- The current all-cash offer from Paramount Skydance for Warner Bros. Discovery is for $31 per share. This is an increase from the initial $30 per share bid made in December 2025. - Paramount's bid is for the entire Warner Bros. Discovery company, including its cable networks like CNN and Discovery, whereas the competing offer from Netflix is to acquire only the studio and streaming businesses for $27.75 per share. - To make its offer more attractive, Paramount has included a $7 billion termination fee if the deal is blocked by regulators and has agreed to pay the $2.8 billion fee that Warner Bros. would owe Netflix for walking away from their existing agreement. - The pursuit of Warner Bros. comes after Skydance Media completed its merger with Paramount Global in August 2025, a deal valued at $8 billion that formed the new entity "Paramount Skydance Corporation". - In the fourth quarter of 2025, Paramount reported a net loss of $573 million and revenue of $8.15 billion. During the same period, Warner Bros. Discovery's revenues fell to $9.460 billion, with a net loss of $252 million. - As of the end of 2025, Warner Bros. Discovery reported having a total debt of $33.52 billion. - The bidding war has a political dimension, with billionaire Larry Ellison, father of Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison, being a key financial backer of the bid and a known close relationship with former President Donald Trump. - Both Paramount's and Netflix's proposed deals are facing regulatory scrutiny from the U.S. Department of Justice over potential antitrust concerns.
