Streaming Overtakes Hollywood: Netflix Agrees to Buy Warner Bros. Studios and HBO Max for $72 Billion

Netflix has agreed to acquire Warner Bros. DiscoveryDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →’s film and television studios and its HBO Max streaming service in a deal valued at $72 billion , according to Reuters — the largest acquisition in the company’s history and one of the most consequential restructurings ever undertaken in the entertainment industry.

The agreement, which still requires regulatory approval in the U.S. and Europe, follows a competitive bidding process involving Paramount Skydance and Comcast.

Before the transaction closes, Warner Bros. Discovery will complete a planned spinoff of its traditional cable networks , including CNN, TBS and TNT. The remaining studio and streaming operations — including Warner Bros. Pictures, Warner Bros. Television, HBO, HBO Max, and related production facilities — will transfer to Netflix. The deal includes a $5 billion breakup fee payable by Netflix if antitrust regulators block the acquisition.

For Netflix, the purchase marks a dramatic strategic departure. The company built its business without major acquisitions and has long operated without owning a Hollywood studio.

Buying Warner Bros. gives it direct control over one of the industry's most significant content engines and access to a deep catalogue of programming, from DC films to Game of Thrones . Netflix has also pledged to maintain theatrical releases for Warner Bros. films — a notable shift for a platform that has historically limited cinema distribution.

The sale comes as Warner Bros. Discovery struggles with declining linear TV revenues and the continued migration of audiences to streaming . Its cable networks division reported a 23% revenue drop in the most recent quarter.

Politically, the process has been contentious: Paramount accused Warner Bros. of favouring Netflix, while U.S. lawmakers and anonymous film producers have warned that the merger could harm competition and undermine theatrical exhibition.

If approved, the acquisition would fundamentally reshape the media landscape, bringing Hollywood’s oldest major studio under the control of its most powerful streaming service and leaving Warner Bros. Discovery largely divested of the assets that once defined it.

Sources:
Reuters
The New York Times
Forbes
Bloomberg

J.V.