Netflix is expected to revise the terms of its offer for Warner Bros. Discovery, making an all-cash bid for the company’s studios and streaming businesses.
The move, first reported by Bloomberg, is meant to speed up a deal in the face of stiff competition from rival bidder Paramount Skydance and to make it more palatable to WBD shareholders.
Under the original deal, Netflix bid $82.7bn for WBD, offering WBD shareholders $23.25 in cash and $4.50 in Netflix common stock. However, since the company’s pursuit of WBD began in October, Netflix shares have lost about a quarter of their value.
If Netflix were to make its offer all-cash, a WBD shareholder vote on the deal could take place as early as late February or early March, rather than in spring or summer as expected. Deals comprised of stock typically take longer.
The news came just days after Paramount Skydance said it was suing WBD and CEO David Zaslav to seek more information about why the company’s board continues to reject its $108.4bn takeover offer in favour of Netflix.
Paramount’s bid has been backstopped by a personal $40bn guarantee by Larry Ellison, a Co-Founder of Oracle.
US President Donald Trump recently added his voice to concerns about Netflix's planned $83bn deal to buy Warner Bros Discovery. Discover more here.
UK government pledges £20m for Littlewoods film studios
The UK government has pledged £20m to redevelop Liverpool's derelict Littlewoods building into a film and television production campus.
 (1).jpg)
Strive Capital acquires Jigsaw24
Broadcast technology integrator Jigsaw24 has been acquired by private equity firm Strive Capital.
Instagram launches long-form video pilot in US
Instagram is testing a long-form horizontal video format for US creators called Features, which supports videos up to 90 minutes.
 (1).jpg)
BBC journalists consider strikes
BBC journalists will vote on a statutory industrial action ballot to decide whether to strike, in the wake of large-scale cost savings, workload changes, and planned compulsory redundancies.
 (1).jpg)
UKTV to move to Television Centre
Commercial broadcaster UKTV is to move its HQ and almost 300 staff from London’s Hammersmith to Television Centre by spring 2027.
.jpg)
.jpg)