Netflix has upgraded its $82.7bn (£61.5bn) offer for Warner Bros Discovery by making it an all-cash deal, aiming to speed approval and block a hostile bid from Paramount Skydance.
The revised offer keeps the valuation at $27.75 per share and could allow a shareholder vote as early as April. Netflix said the change adds certainty and simplifies the process. WBD’s board continues to unanimously back the deal.
WBD shareholders would also receive shares in a spun-off global networks business, including CNN and Discovery, which Netflix is not buying. Paramount is still pursuing a larger $108.4bn takeover but faces a proxy fight after a court rejected its legal challenge.
If WBD walks away from Netflix’s deal, it would owe a $2.8bn breakup fee, alongside other costs. Netflix would gain control of key assets such as Warner Bros studios and HBO.
