Overview
- Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery executed a merger agreement valued at about $110–111 billion covering the entire WBD portfolio, including studios, HBO, streaming, games and TV networks such as CNN.
- Netflix declined to match Paramount’s revised $31‑per‑share offer and withdrew from the bidding, with the streamer confirming it will receive a $2.8 billion termination fee.
- Reporting details sizable financing, including roughly $54 billion in bank debt commitments and major equity backing tied to Larry Ellison, alongside the assumption of WBD’s existing debt.
- Paramount pledged to keep both studios operating with commitments to 15 theatrical releases per studio annually and full 45‑day theatrical windows before premium VOD.
- The agreement awaits shareholder and multi‑jurisdictional antitrust approvals, as officials including California’s attorney general signal vigorous scrutiny and industry sources warn of multibillion‑dollar cost cuts, potential thousands of layoffs and concerns about editorial influence over news outlets like CNN.