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But the landscape shifted quickly.
Paramount Skydance, led by David Ellison, entered the fray with aggressive counteroffers — not merely targeting Warner Bros.’ studio and streaming properties, but the entire company. That broader bid included cable networks such as CNN and Discovery, dramatically raising the stakes and altering the competitive calculus.
Paramount’s latest proposal, submitted Thursday, offered $31 per share — a significant premium over Netflix’s original agreement. Warner Bros. Discovery’s board declared the new bid a “superior proposal,” triggering a contractual four-business-day window allowing Netflix to match or exceed the offer.
Netflix declined.
In a carefully worded statement, co-CEOs Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters made clear that discipline, not desperation, would guide the company’s next move.
“We’ve always been disciplined, and at the price required to match Paramount Skydance’s latest offer, the deal is no longer financially attractive, so we are declining to match the Paramount Skydance bid,” the company said.
With that, Netflix exited the contest.
Investors responded immediately. Shares of Netflix jumped nearly 10 percent following the announcement, signaling market approval of the company’s decision to avoid what many analysts feared could become an overpriced bidding war. In addition, Paramount agreed to shoulder the hefty $2.8 billion termination fee that Warner Bros. Discovery would owe Netflix if the original deal is formally dissolved.
That payment effectively smooths the transition and paves the way for Paramount Skydance to proceed with acquiring Warner Bros. Discovery in full.
If completed, the transaction would unite major Hollywood studios, premium streaming platforms like Paramount+ and HBO Max, and legacy networks including CBS, CNN, and Discovery under one corporate umbrella. The combined entity would be valued at more than $111 billion, creating one of the most powerful media conglomerates in the world.
The political dimension cannot be ignored.
The proposed Netflix acquisition faced significant headwinds from the Trump administration, which had raised antitrust concerns about allowing a streaming titan to selectively scoop up key studio and premium television assets. Justice Department approval would have been required, injecting regulatory uncertainty into an already complicated transaction.
By contrast, Paramount’s approach — consolidating production, streaming, and cable distribution together — aligns more closely with broader industry consolidation trends. Media companies are racing to integrate content creation and delivery pipelines as streaming competition intensifies and advertising revenues fluctuate.
The collapse of the Netflix deal underscores a larger truth about today’s corporate America: even the most carefully negotiated agreements can unravel when higher bids, political pressure, and shareholder interests collide.
For Netflix, walking away may prove to be a strategic retreat rather than a defeat. The company avoids taking on massive new debt and sidesteps regulatory battles that could have dragged on for months, if not years.
For Paramount Skydance, the path is now open — though final approvals and formal termination of the Netflix agreement remain procedural hurdles ahead.
One thing is certain: the media landscape is shifting rapidly. With legacy studios, streaming platforms, and cable networks consolidating at record scale, the fight for America’s screens is far from over.
And this week’s corporate standoff just changed the balance of power in Hollywood.
