Paramount Skydance Corp (NASDAQ:PSKY) on Monday launched an all-cash tender offer to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc (NASDAQ:WBD) for $30 per share, valuing the company at $108.4 billion and including its Global Networks segment.
Both stocks gained after the announcement.
Paramount aims to give Warner Bros. shareholders a faster, more certain, and higher-value alternative to Netflix Inc.'s (NASDAQ:NFLX) mixed cash-and-stock proposal, which exposes shareholders to regulatory delays and uncertain returns.
Paramount Bid
Paramount said it plans to create a scaled Hollywood leader by combining Paramount and Warner Bros.
It expects to invest in creative talent, supporting movie theaters, expanding direct-to-consumer offerings, and more.
The acquisition promises $6+ billion in cost synergies, enhanced competition, and significant growth potential.
Paramount is taking the offer directly to shareholders after Warner Bros.' board rejected its prior proposals, emphasizing the deal's superior value and strategic benefits.
Paramount held $3.26 billion in cash and equivalents as of September 30, 2025.
Netflix Bid
Netflix is pressing ahead with its Warner Bros. acquisition and is betting regulatory approval — not rival bidders — will decide the deal, as Paramount Skydance raises concerns about a potentially biased sale process.
Last Friday, Netflix shares slipped as investors digested the $82.7 billion cash-and-stock agreement, which values Warner Bros. at $27.75 per share and gives Netflix control of Warner Bros. film and TV studios plus the HBO and HBO Max businesses.
The agreement followed a fierce bidding battle in which Netflix secured exclusive talks, even as Paramount Skydance urged Warner Bros. to review the process through an independent committee over conflict-of-interest concerns.
Both companies' boards approved the deal, which now awaits regulatory and shareholder approvals and is expected to close after Warner Bros. completes the spin-off of its Global Networks unit in 2026.
Netflix said it plans to keep Warner Bros. theatrical strategy intact and targets $2–3 billion in annual cost savings by year three, with the transaction expected to boost GAAP earnings per share by year two.
What Paramount CEO Said
In a CNBC interview, Paramount CEO David Ellison said,
"There is an inherent bias against us."
Paramount CEO David Ellison champions their deal: "We designed our deal to be pro-consumer, pro-talent, and pro-competition." He points out that Warner Bros. "gave us no response to our offer."
He also said that “allowing number 1 and number 3 streamer to combine is anti-competitive.”
Price Actions: WBD stock is trading higher by 6.52% to $27.78 at last check on Monday. PSKY is up 3.40%. NFLX is down 3.01%.
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Image created using artificial intelligence via Gemini.
