Warner Bros. Discovery is restarting acquisition talks with Skydance-owned Paramount to hear the company’s “best and final” offer, while the Hollywood giant continues to support the studio and streaming deal it made with Netflix.
In Tuesday’s regulatory filing, Warner said it had received permission from Netflix to resume talks with Paramount in the next seven days or until Monday. Warner said this would allow the companies to discuss unresolved “shortcomings” and “clarify certain terms” of Paramount’s latest bid.
But in the meantime, Warner’s board is still recommending shareholder support for its proposed merger with Netflix. A special meeting has now been scheduled for Friday, March 20, to vote on that deal.
In a statement, Netflix said it believed its proposed transaction “provides superior value and certainty” – but it recognized the “ongoing distraction to WBD stockholders and the broader entertainment industry caused by PSKY’s actions.” The streaming giant noted that it had given Warner seven days to “finally resolve this matter.”
Warner’s leadership similarly reiterated its support for the Netflix deal.
Meanwhile, Paramount described Tuesday’s action by Warner’s board as “unusual” and said the company could have determined without the deadline whether Paramount’s offer was superior. Nevertheless, Paramount said it was “nevertheless prepared to engage in good faith and constructive discussion.”
Paramount said it would continue to pursue its tender offer, priced at $30 a share, which was better than Netflix’s offer, as well as pursue a proxy fight.
The battle for Warner Bros. Discovery is complicated because Netflix and Paramount want different things. In December, Netflix agreed to buy Warner’s studios and streaming business for $72 billion, now in an all-cash transaction that will cover its legacy TV and film production arms as well as HBO Max. Including debt, the deal has an enterprise value of approximately $83 billion, or $27.75 per share, and will be finalized after Warner completes the previously-announced separation of its cable operations.
Meanwhile, unlike Netflix, Paramount wants to acquire Warner’s entire company — including networks like CNN and Discovery — and went straight to shareholders with a $77.9 billion hostile offer just days after the Netflix deal was announced.
The enterprise value of Paramount’s bid is currently about $108 billion including debt, or $30 per share. But Warner revealed on Tuesday that a representative of Paramount separately informed the company that it would raise its offer to $31 per share “pending agreement.”
Analysts at Raymond James said they had “long believed” that Paramount was willing to raise its offer “and now it looks like we’re finally moving in that direction.” If Paramount raises its price to $32 or $33 per share, he noted that “it would be very difficult to argue that the Netflix deal is better”, although Netflix could then move to match the bid.
“Netflix is ​​still in the driver’s seat, but now it needs to make its case,” the analysts said in a Tuesday research note.
Paramount has recently made more efforts to improve its offering. Last week, the company said it would pay Warner shareholders an additional “ticking fee” if its deal is not reached by the end of the year — amounting to 25 cents a share for each quarter after Dec. 31, or a total of $650 million. Paramount also pledged to fund Warner’s proposed $2.8 billion breakup payment to Netflix under its merger agreement.
The company is struggling to consolidate more shareholder support. Paramount has extended its tender offer three times, with the latest deadline set for March 2. According to company disclosures, as of early last week more than 42.3 million Warner shares had been “validly tendered and not withdrawn” from its hostile bid, down from more than 168.5 million Warner shares as of Jan. 21 — still a small portion of Warner’s 2.48 billion shares outstanding in Series A common stock.
But also last week, Ancora Holdings, an activist investor, publicly expressed opposition to Warner’s proposed merger with Netflix. And beyond its tender offer, Paramount has also promised a proxy fight. On Tuesday, the company reiterated plans to nominate its own directors at Warner’s upcoming annual meeting.
What changes after the next seven days of talks still remains to be seen. Paramount, Warner and Netflix have spent the past few months feuding over who has the stronger deal.
The prospect of Warner’s sale to any company has raised tremendous antitrust concerns among lawmakers around the world, who are calling on regulators to carefully scrutinize a merger of this size.
Read this also What Netflix’s Warner Bros. Discovery deal means for viewers
The US Justice Department has already begun its review, and other countries may also investigate any deals. Both Paramount and Netflix said they had received securities approval from German authorities last month.
Shares of Warner Bros. Discovery rose more than 3% in Tuesday trading. Paramount Skydance climbed more than 5%, while Netflix stock rose slightly.
published – February 18, 2026 02:13 PM IST