By Kayla DeKraker
As the streaming world expands and partnerships form between different platforms, rumor has it that Netflix has its eye on Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD).
According to Dylan Byers from Puck News, a reliable source told him that “a well-placed Hollywood source called to suggest… that Netflix was also considering a bid for David Zaslav’s [WBD CEO and president] assets.”
Netflix isn’t the only company scouting out WBD. Shortly after the merge between Paramount and Skydance Media, Paramount has sought to do that same.
LightShed Partners Analyst Richard Greenfield explained that between Comcast, another company seeking to buy WBD, and Paramount, he believes Paramount is more likely to take the win.
Related: Here’s What Boosted Warner Bros. Discovery’s Largest Monthly Viewing Increase
“While we could still foresee Comcast bidding for WBD now…to push Paramount’s price higher, as they did in the Disney/Fox battle, the problem for Comcast now is two-fold: the Trump administration is not favorable to Comcast, whereas the administration is quite fond of the Ellison family (who controls Paramount), and the Ellison family has massive wealth to raise their bid, which would be impossible for Comcast/Roberts family to match,” he explained.
He added, “While WBD investors may hope for competitive bids from Netflix, Amazon or Apple, we do not believe any are likely to bid and even Comcast will be hard pressed to actually bid knowing they almost certainly cannot win.”
Is Greenfield correct that Netflix would not win? The company is the most successful of all streamers, excluding YouTube. Nielson’s “The Gauge” shared that 8.7% of streaming time in August was on Netflix.
He continued, “Expect a Paramount bid that is likely higher than you would expect for WBD and mostly in cash to force the WBD board to vote yes and to prevent alternative bidders. We could envision a bid of $20.00-22.50, mostly in cash from the Ellison family, ensuring that the combined company is tightly controlled, enabling them to execute their long-term vision.”
Greenfield noted that “Paramount Skydance did not originally believe the WBD split was actually going to occur due to leverage issues…Paramount realized they had to move quickly on WBD before that happened.”
If Netflix does acquire WBD, the move would certainly expand Netflix’s already growing reach.
Recently, the company added live immersive experiences called “Netflix House” with locations in Philadelphia, opening in November, and Dallas, opening in December.
Time will tell what’s in store for WBD. In the meantime, though, the streaming war continues to rage, and Netflix isn’t doing too bad.
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