Warner Bros. Discovery is currently in the midst of fielding acquisition offers from Paramount Skydance, Comcast, and Netflix. The company has set a deadline for second-round bids to be submitted by Monday, Dec. 1, with the requirement that they surpass the original proposals. This news was first reported by Bloomberg News and confirmed by Variety.
Following the submission of the new bids, Warner Bros. Discovery may enter into exclusive negotiations with one of the interested companies. The initial offers were put forward on Nov. 20 by Paramount Skydance, Comcast, and Netflix. However, representatives for Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount Skydance have declined to comment on the matter, while Comcast and Netflix have yet to respond to requests for statements.
In response to in-bound M&A interest from multiple parties, Warner Bros. Discovery initiated a review process for potential offers last month. The company specified that it will consider proposals where the Warner Bros. business, including HBO Max and the studios, is sold separately from Discovery Global, the TV-centric entity. This aligns with Warner Bros. Discovery’s existing plan to divide into two separate companies by April 2026.
Netflix and Comcast are primarily interested in acquiring Warner Bros.’ streaming and studio operations, excluding the cable TV business. On the other hand, Paramount Skydance is looking to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery in its entirety. Despite Paramount chief David Ellison’s previous bid being rejected by the board, a new offer was submitted in the first round of bidding.
As part of its bid, Netflix has assured Warner Bros. Discovery that it would uphold the latter’s theatrical distribution agreements to ensure Warner Bros. films continue to be shown in cinemas if the acquisition is successful. Ultimately, the Warner Bros. Discovery board reserves the right to reject all M&A offers and proceed with the original plan to split the company into two separate entities: Warner Bros., led by CEO Zaslav, and Discovery Global, helmed by current CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels.
