Paramount on the verge of building an unprecedented media empire amid the imminent purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery
Paramount's proposal seeks to acquire the entirety of Warner Bros. Discovery's assets - including its traditional television operations such as CNN and TNT Sports - with an offer that calls for $31 per share in cash and a termination fee of $7.billion.
El logo de Paramount durante una presentación en Las Vegas (Archivo)
Streaming platform Netflix announced Thursday that it will not raise its bid to compete with Paramount's attempt to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, thus leaving Larry Ellison's company an unbeatable opportunity to take over the sprawling media conglomerate behind major brands such as CNN and HBO. The decision came shortly after Warner Bros. Discovery, led by CEO David Zaslav, indicated that Paramount's unsolicited proposal was "superior" to the deal previously struck with Netflix at the end of 2025.
"The transaction we negotiated would have created shareholder value with a clear path to regulatory approval. However, 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" Netflix said in a statement. Under the initial deal with that platform, the streaming giant would have gained control of Warner Bros. Discovery's major film and television studios in a deal valued at more than $70 billion.
Larry Ellison is a major Trump ally
Paramount was acquired last year by Skydance Media, the fast-growing entertainment company controlled by Ellison, who is known to be not only a successful businessman, but also a major ally of President Donald Trump. The acquisition was spearheaded by his son David, who has since gone on to oversee significant changes in Paramount's news and entertainment divisions, including CBS.
According to various media reports, Paramount's proposal seeks to acquire the entirety of Warner Bros. Discovery's assets - including its traditional television operations such as CNN and TNT Sports - with an offer that calls for $31 per share in cash and a termination fee of $7.billion tied to the previous Netflix deal. "We are pleased WBD’s Board has unanimously affirmed the superior value of our offer, which delivers to WBD shareholders superior value, certainty and speed to closing," David Ellison said in a statement Thursday.
Far from avoiding expressing his opinion on what Paramount has done, what is certain is that Trump has publicly praised the Ellison's efforts to reform CBS under his company's leadership, and has even expressed interest in seeing CNN operate under new ownership.
Any merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery would require Justice Department approval.
Paramount's extensive portfolio
In terms of assets, the company would integrate under its structure networks and brands such as TNT, CBS, CNN, MTV, TCM, Showtime, Adult Swim, DC Studios, Paramount+, Nickelodeon, HBO/HBO Max, Comedy Central and Cartoon Network.
In the realm of film and franchise rights, the conglomerate would add such commercially valuable intellectual properties as Star Trek, Gremlins, Beetlejuice, the DC Comics universe, Tom &, Tom &, Tom & and Tom &.DC Comics, Tom & Jerry, Harry Potter, Citizen Kane, Transformers, A Quiet Place, Looney Tunes, The Conjuring, Mortal Kombat, Game of Thrones, Dora the Explorer, Mission Impossible, The Lord of the Rings, SpongeBob SquarePants, Avatar: The Last Airbender and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
It would also include distribution rights to productions such as Dune 3, Minecraft and the so-called MonsterVerse.
LATEST
