Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) announced Tuesday that it has resumed discussions with Paramount Skydance regarding the company’s buyout proposal, giving the suitor a week to submit a “best and final offer” ahead of a competing bid from Netflix.
“These discussions, set to conclude on February 23, aim to address unresolved issues and clarify certain terms of PSKY’s proposed merger agreement,” WBD said in a statement, while reaffirming its preference for Netflix’s deal. The media giant has scheduled a special shareholders meeting for March 20 to vote on the Netflix merger.
The television and film powerhouse, which owns CNN and other major properties, revealed in late October that it was open to acquisition offers. Its board subsequently approved Netflix’s bid, which targets only WBD’s streaming and studio operations.
Paramount Skydance, in contrast, is pursuing a full acquisition of WBD valued at $108 billion, compared with Netflix’s $83 billion offer for the narrower segment. Netflix’s bid would not include WBD’s TV networks, including CNN and Discovery, which would instead form a new publicly traded entity called Global Networks if the deal goes through.
Paramount Skydance has criticized WBD’s board for not providing shareholders with sufficient information to fairly assess its offer against Netflix’s. “Since making its initial offer, Paramount has amended it twice,” WBD noted, signaling that the ongoing discussions are focused on resolving outstanding concerns.
