Warner Bros urges shareholders to reject $108bn Paramount Skydance bid; backs Netflix merger

Warner Bros has urged its shareholders to reject a hostile takeover bid from Paramount Skydance, arguing that a proposed merger with Netflix would deliver greater value to consumers and better long-term growth for the company.

In a letter to shareholders issued on Wednesday, Warner Bros said it strongly favoured the Netflix offer over Paramount’s proposal.

“We strongly believe that Netflix and Warner Bros. joining forces will offer consumers more choice and value, allow the creative community to reach even more audiences with our combined distribution, and fuel our long-term growth,” the company said. It added that Netflix’s “deep portfolio of iconic franchises, expansive library, and strong studio capabilities will complement—not duplicate—our existing business”.

Paramount Skydance went directly to Warner Bros shareholders last week after its earlier approaches were rejected by the company’s leadership. Paramount is offering $30 per Warner share, higher than Netflix’s $27.75 bid.

Despite Warner’s recommendation, shareholders can still choose to accept Paramount’s offer, which covers the entire company, including its cable assets such as CNN and Discovery. Netflix’s proposal, by contrast, excludes Warner’s cable operations and would be completed only after the company carries out its previously announced separation of those assets.

Paramount has said it made six separate bids before Warner Bros announced its preferred deal with Netflix on 5 December, prompting Paramount to take its offer directly to shareholders.

Both bids are expected to face intense regulatory scrutiny. Any change in ownership at Warner Bros would significantly reshape the global entertainment industry, affecting film production, streaming platforms and, in Paramount’s case, the US news landscape.

Critics of the Netflix deal argue that combining Netflix with Warner’s HBO Max could give the streaming giant excessive market power. Paramount+, while competing in the same space, is far smaller.

Concerns have also been raised about the impact of either deal on film and television production. Netflix has agreed to honour Warner’s contractual theatrical release commitments, but sceptics point to Netflix’s historical emphasis on online-first distribution. Meanwhile, Paramount and Warner Bros remain two of the last five major legacy studios in Hollywood.

Paramount’s bid to acquire Warner’s cable networks and news operations would bring CBS and CNN under the same corporate umbrella, raising further questions about media consolidation and editorial independence. Similar concerns were voiced following Skydance’s $8 billion acquisition of Paramount, completed in August.

US President Donald Trump has signalled that politics could play a role in regulatory approval. He has previously suggested that the Netflix deal “could be a problem” due to the potential for market dominance, while also maintaining close ties with Oracle founder Larry Ellison, whose family trust is backing Paramount’s bid.

Affinity Partners, an investment firm run by Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, had earlier indicated support for the Paramount bid but announced on Tuesday that it was withdrawing from the deal.

Trump has continued to criticise Paramount over editorial decisions at CBS, particularly its flagship programme 60 Minutes. Writing on Truth Social on Tuesday, he said: “For those people that think I am close with the new owners of CBS, please understand that 60 Minutes has treated me far worse since the so-called ‘takeover’, than they have ever treated me before. If they are friends, I’d hate to see my enemies!”