Entertainment desk : Netflix has switched to an all-cash offer for Warner Bros Discovery’s studio and streaming assets without increasing the $82.7 billion price in a bid to shut the door on Paramount’s rival efforts to snag the Hollywood giant.The new all-cash bid – at $27.75 a share – has unanimous support from the Warner Bros board, according to a Tuesday regulatory filing.
Both Netflix and Paramount Skydance covet Warner Bros WBD.O for its leading film and television studios, extensive content library and major franchises such as “Game of Thrones,” “Harry Potter” and DC Comics’ superheroes Batman and Superman.Paramount has altered its terms and engaged in an aggressive media campaign to try to convince shareholders that its bid is superior, but Warner Bros has spurned the David Ellison-led company. It declined to comment Tuesday on Netflix’s all-cash offer.
Warner Bros will hold a special investor meeting to vote on the Netflix deal, with the streaming pioneer saying that the meeting was expected to be held by April.”Our revised all-cash agreement will enable an expedited timeline to a stockholder vote and provide greater financial certainty,” Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said in a statement.
Shares of Netflix, which is slated to report quarterly earnings after the market close, were up 0.9 percent. Paramount shares were down 1.9 percent, while Warner Bros’ shares down 0.5% in early trading.Alex Fitch, portfolio manager for Harris Oakmark, the fifth largest investor in Warner Bros with about 96 million shares as of Sept 30, predicted the bidding war for Warner Bros may not be over.
“This new agreement only ramps up the pressure,” said Fitch. “The changes show that Netflix is serious about winning, and the accelerated shareholder vote means Paramount needs to act with urgency. Now, it is up to Paramount to provide a clearly superior offer if they want to get this done.”
