Netflix Revises Warner Bros. Deal to $72B All-Cash Offer

Will this offer lead to a pro-consumer merger, or a dangerous media monopoly that will threaten independence?

Published JAN 20

Netflix Revises Warner Bros. Deal to $72B All-Cash Offer

Story

Above: The Warner Bros. Discovery Techwood office campus in Atlanta, Georgia, Image credit: Elijah Nouvelage/Bloomberg via Getty Images

The Facts

Netflix announced on Tuesday that it amended its agreement to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery's studios and HBO Max streaming business to an all-cash offer valued at $27.75 per share, maintaining the overall $72 billion equity value of the deal.
Netflix
CNBC
FOX News
The revised all-cash structure eliminates the stock component from Netflix's original bid and is expected to enable Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders to vote on the proposed transaction by April 2026, accelerating the timeline from the previously anticipated spring or early summer vote.
Guardian
CNBC
Warner Bros. Discovery stockholders will receive $27.75 per share in cash, plus additional value in the form of shares in Discovery Global, which will be spun off as a separate publicly traded company, including networks such as CNN, TNT and the Discovery Channel.
FOX News
Forbes
This comes as Paramount Skydance is continuing its hostile takeover attempt with a $108.4 billion all-cash bid for the entirety of Warner Bros. Discovery. It recently announced plans to nominate directors to Warner's board to vote against the Netflix deal approval.
The Hollywood Reporter
Guardian
Warner Bros. Discovery's board has twice recommended that shareholders reject Paramount's offer, calling the Netflix merger deal superior and noting that under the Netflix agreement, investors would retain a stake in the separately traded Discovery Global company.
The Wall Street Journal
FOX News
Netflix shares have fallen approximately 15% since announcing the merger on Dec. 5. Both companies are seeking to acquire Warner Bros. for its film and television studios and major franchises, including Harry Potter and DC Comics superheroes.
Yahoo Finance
FOX News

Sources Split

LEFT

CENTER

RIGHT

ESTAB
CRIT

CENTER

PRO
ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

Netflix's latest offer is a superior deal that provides shareholders with greater financial certainty and an accelerated timeline. The revised structure eliminates market-based variability while maintaining the transaction value, demonstrating Netflix's commitment to completing this pro-consumer, pro-innovation combination. This merger will unite two premier storytelling companies and deliver broader choice and greater value to audiences worldwide.

The Moonlight Warrior on X

Screen Daily

Ars Technica

Narrative B

This merger threatens to create a dangerous media monopoly that would give Netflix control over more than a quarter of the U.S. media market. Concentrating oversight of major newsrooms like CNN under one owner with potential political ties undermines media independence and diversity. The deal deserves heavy regulatory skepticism given the unprecedented market power it would grant to a single streaming giant.