Paramount wins the battle against Netflix to buy Warner.

BarcelonaNetflix has definitively withdrawn from the race to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) after its board of directors concluded that the latest offer from Paramount Skydance (PSKY) was superior and that the price needed to match it was no longer justifiable for shareholders. Victory, therefore, goes to the consortium led by David Ellison, under the shadow—and financial muscle—of his father, Larry Ellison, who put forward an offer of $31 per share, with additional incentives if the deal is delayed and even assuming the penalty for breaking with Netflix, which had made a final offer of $27.75. Pending government approval, this major media saga is nearing its conclusion.

Thus, Paramount's offer includes this cash payment per share, compared to the previously proposed $30, as well as an additional payment of $0.25 per share per quarter starting September 30, 2026, if the deal has not closed by then. Paramount also commits to paying the $2.8 billion that Warner Bros. would owe Netflix for breaking their agreement and would provide additional capital if necessary to meet the solvency requirements of lending banks.

Warner Bros. had reached a preliminary acquisition agreement with Netflix last December, when the streaming giant announced the deal for €62 billion. Just three days later, Paramount put €93 billion on the table. The move was interpreted as having political undertones. The Ellisons are media billionaires (owners of Paramount, Skydance, and networks like CBS) and close allies of Donald Trump. Larry Ellison is one of the people richest in the world thanks to their companyThe technology company Oracle is backing the deal with $40 billion of its personal wealth. Trump had indicated that the Netflix acquisition "could be a problem," paving the way for Paramount, even though one of Netflix's CEOs, Ted Sarandos, had visited the president before the announcement. Warner Bros. has finally confirmed the plot twist and notified Netflix that Paramount's proposal "constitutes a superior offer." The CEOs of the streaming giant thanked Warner Bros. for conducting a "fair and rigorous" process. "We believe we would have been good stewards of Warner Bros.' iconic brands, that our deal would have strengthened the entertainment industry and preserved and created more production jobs. However, this transaction has always been desirable at the right price, not essential at any price," Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters said in a statement. And they took the opportunity to announce that Netflix will invest $20 billion this year in more series and films.

So, in the Paramount Skydance deal, Warner's vast catalog of series and films will be included. This means the entire library of the HBO Max platform—which is part of Warner and includes series titles such as Game of Thrones and The Big Bang Theoryand has 132 million subscribers—and classic films like Casablanca, Citizen Kane and the saga of Harry Potter. The company could also acquire the CNN and Discovery news channels, which were left out of Netflix's offer.