Netflix has revised its $82.7bn offer for Warner Bros Discovery by switching to an all-cash deal, a move designed to speed up shareholder approval and strengthen its position against a rival hostile bid from Paramount Skydance.
The revised proposal keeps the valuation at $27.75 per share but removes the share component, which Netflix says gives investors greater certainty and could allow a shareholder vote as early as April. Warner Bros Discovery’s board continues to unanimously back Netflix’s offer.
Under the deal, Netflix would acquire Warner Bros’ studios and streaming assets, including HBO, while WBD’s global networks business – such as CNN and Discovery Channel – would be spun off to existing shareholders.
Paramount Skydance is pressing ahead with a larger $108.4bn hostile bid for the entire company and has attempted to block the Netflix deal through legal action and a potential proxy fight. A Delaware judge has already rejected Paramount’s lawsuit seeking more disclosures on the Netflix agreement.
If WBD were to abandon the Netflix deal, it would face billions of dollars in breakup and related costs, a key argument the board has used to urge shareholders to reject Paramount’s approach.
