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New Delhi: Streaming giant Netflix has just sealed a jaw-dropping $82.7 billion deal to acquire Warner Bros. Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said on the landmark agreement that, “Our mission has always been to entertain the world. Together, we can give audiences more of what they love and help define the next century of storytelling.” On the other hand, WBD CEO David Zaslav also appeared to take good stock of the agreement by saying, “Today’s announcement combines two of the greatest storytelling companies in the world to bring to even more people the entertainment they love to watch the most.”
The announcement of the merger came on Friday, confirming that Netflix and WBD have entered a “definitive agreement” for the sale. This has reportedly been unanimously approved by both companies’ boards. The deal includes HBO, HBO Max, Warner Bros. film and TV studios, and DC Entertainment.
According to Netflix’s SEC filing, the sale’s total equity value sits at $72 billion, with an enterprise value of $82.7 billion, factoring in WBD’s debt. Netflix valued Warner Bros. Discovery shares at $27.75 apiece, a price tag high enough to edge out competing bids from Paramount Skydance and Comcast’s NBC Universal, which had proposed a merger earlier this year.
The merger is nearly complete, both parties now just need to get approval from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The deal is expected to close after Discovery Global, WBD’s Global Networks arm, is spun off as a separate publicly traded company in Q3 2026.
The agreement is being seen as a win for both parties. For Warner Bros. Discovery who has been facing recent debt issues, it is an easy way out. For Netflix, it is continuing its agenda of global dominance of audio-visual medium dominance.
Once the deal is finalised, Netflix users can expect access to a massive catalogue of Warner Bros. classics and contemporary hits. Also, Netflix has confirmed that it plans to “maintain Warner Bros.’ current operations and build on its strengths, including theatrical releases for films.” This is important and something that a lot of industry experts and insiders have been worrying about.
In recent years, the dominance of OTT has slowly given theatre films a big competition. With Netflix now acquiring one of Hollywood’s biggest studios, this process will only accentuate. With it might come several changes. The dominance of film as a medium of art viewed in theatres is to be heavily challenged, as OTTs take over. Netflix being the leader in the field and taking over film production houses might result in widening the gap between the two forms, with Netflix expected to focus more on OTT releases than traditional releases. This can also result in changing prices for both platforms.
