WBD had agreed to sell to Netflix but Paramount swiftly countered with an all-cash offer, which WBD’s board is calling ‘inadequate’
Warner Bros Discovery has urged shareholders to reject a $108.4bn hostile takeover offer from Paramount Skydance, branding it “inadequate” amid an extraordinary corporate battle to control the legacy media conglomerate.
WBD agreed to sell its storied movie studios, HBO cable network and streaming service to Netflix in a $82.7bn deal earlier this month, setting the stage for a seismic shift in Hollywood’s industrial landscape.
But Paramount, which had privately bid for WBD before the Netflix deal was unveiled, swiftly countered with an all-cash offer and vowed to take it directly to shareholders. Unlike Netflix, Paramount – which is controlled by the billionaire Ellison family – bid for the entire company, which also includes the CNN news network.
In a blunt letter to shareholders on Wednesday morning, WBD accused Paramount of having “consistently misled” investors by claiming its bid has a “full backstop” – a safety net to ensure it has sufficient funds – from the Ellisons.
