This new offer from Paramount followed a previously proposed price of $30 per share. Warner Bros. confirmed that it will continue negotiations with Paramount before making a final decision on whether to proceed with the deal with Netflix, which was reached in December.
Netflix, which has only four days to make a counteroffer, has not yet commented on the situation. In an interview with the BBC, Ted Sarandos, CEO of Netflix, declined to answer a question about the company's willingness to engage in further negotiations regarding Warner Bros. He noted, "I don't want to make hypothetical assumptions... We are very happy with the current situation and have always been disciplined buyers."
Sarandos added that "this is all a process of price discovery."
Paramount, backed by billionaire Larry Ellison and led by his son David, has been actively trying to acquire Warner Bros. since last year. However, previous offers from Paramount have been rejected. In December, Warner Bros. announced it had reached an agreement with Netflix to sell its film and streaming divisions, including HBO, for $27.75 per share, which ultimately amounted to about $82 billion including debt.
Additionally, Warner Bros. plans to spin off the remaining part of the business, including traditional television channels and CNN, into an independent company.
After being rejected, Paramount improved its initial offer to acquire Warner Bros., now stating its willingness to pay $31 per share in cash, with additional payments in case of delays in completing the deal.
Paramount also agreed to cover $7 billion if the deal does not go through, and $2.8 billion that Warner Bros. owes to Netflix if the merger is not realized.
The board of directors of Warner Bros. has not yet made a final decision regarding the next steps.
Lawmakers have expressed concerns about the offers from both companies, citing potential monopoly issues and impacts on the entertainment industry as a whole. At recent hearings in Washington, Sarandos was questioned about potential price increases and the future of cinemas. The connections of the Ellison family with the Trump administration were also mentioned, drawing the attention of Democrats.
