Paramount Considers Hostile Offer to Challenge Netflix’s Warner Deal

In the latest twist in Hollywood’s consolidation race, Paramount is reportedly preparing a hostile takeover attempt for Warner Bros. DiscoveryDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →—just days after Warner Bros. agreed to sell part of its business to Netflix. What began as a conventional bidding process has rapidly turned into a dramatic battle between two major media players with very different strategies for the future of entertainment.

Late last week, Paramount made a final all-cash offer of $30 per share to buy Warner Bros. in full. The board rejected the proposal and instead accepted Netflix’s slightly lower bid of $27.75 per share for the streaming and studio operations only. The remaining linear TV assets, including CNN and TNT, are set to be spun off as a separate company. That division of the business has become the central point of disagreement: Paramount believes the spin-off is worth around $2 per share, while Warner Bros. argues the value could be higher.

After Warner’s rejection, new reports suggest Paramount may directly approach shareholders with a hostile bid. Under that strategy, Paramount would need to convince investors that its all-cash $30-per-share proposal delivers more long-term value than Netflix’s mix of cash and stock, combined with the future upside of the television spin-off. The financial math is tight enough that small differences in valuation could determine which offer looks superior.

The potential move highlights a deeper competitive challenge. Netflix, already the world’s dominant streaming company, would gain major studio assets and expand its content pipeline, reinforcing its position against rivals like Disney and Amazon. Paramount, by contrast, faces the risk of being locked out of scale-defining assets just as streaming economics are reshaping the industry. The company, recently restructured after being acquired by Skydance, sees Warner Bros. as an opportunity to close that gap.

For now, markets are reacting in real time. Paramount shares fell on news of a possible hostile bid, while Warner Bros. stock rose on renewed buyout speculation. The coming weeks could decide not only who controls some of Hollywood’s most iconic assets, but also who sets the pace in the increasingly global fight for streaming dominance.

Sources:
Investor's Business Daily
Axios

A.M.