Paramount Wins Warner Bros. Discovery Bidding War as Netflix Walks Away

After declining Paramount's offer for the entirety of Warner Bros. Discovery, including networks like CNN, Netflix is now declining to match the offer, signaling that Paramount has won the bidding war, according to The Wall Street Journal. 

Netflix officially pulled out of the deal after the Warner board of directors determined that Paramount's $ 31-per-share offer was superior. Before this, Netflix already revamped its offer of about $72 billion.

Now, Paramount will take control of all things Warner Bros., including HBO, Superman, and Harry Potter, as noted by The Journal. 

Netflix Executive Speaks Out

More Details of the Deal

As a result, Netflix will get nearly $3 billion for the deal falling apart, and Paramount, in addition to $81 billion for the company, will pay $7 billion in termination fees should the deal fall through due to regulatory concerns. 

Also, Paramount offered to pay a "ticking fee" of 25 cents per share. It was originally scheduled to begin in January 2027, but it'll now be September 30, 2026. This will begin if the deal hasn't closed. 

It's worth noting that if this deal goes through, Paramount will own both CNN and CBS News. 

In a memo to its staff, CNN President Mark Thompson said, “Don’t jump to conclusions until we know more.”

“The idea that Paramount should be allowed to control CBS and CNN should be unthinkable,” said Craig Aaron, co-CEO of media advocacy group Free Press, per The Journal, adding that the new owner promised President Trump they would “make sweeping changes to CNN given the chance, and we know what that means.”

With Netflix out of the picture, Paramount will now look to close the deal. This could also help Netflix's stock rebound, as Netflix has lost $170 billion in market value since last September, when it was considered a favorite to buy Warner Bros.