NEW YORK, February 17. /TASS/. US media conglomerate Warner Bros. (WBD) has decided to temporarily resume negotiations on a potential merger with Paramount Skydance (PS), WBD’s press service said.
The talks will last one week and conclude on February 23. The decision was made after PS expressed readiness to raise its proposed price for WBD shares, indicating that its offer was not final. WBD’s management intends to use these seven days to clarify PS’s position and obtain its definitive proposal.
Despite this development, WBD’s board of directors continues to recommend that shareholders approve a partial merger with the streaming service Netflix. A shareholder vote on the matter is scheduled for March 20.
According to US media reports, WBD’s decision gives PS a week to put forward a more attractive deal than Netflix. However, even if that happens, Netflix would retain matching rights, allowing it to improve its offer to terms equal to those proposed by PS. It also remains unclear whether PS will engage in substantive negotiations with WBD or attempt to derail the Netflix transaction through indirect means.
The proposed sale of part of the assets of one of Hollywood’s oldest studios, WBD, to the relatively young streaming service Netflix has been widely discussed in recent months both within the media industry and among US politicians. Experts believe that Netflix’s acquisition of WBD’s film studios and catalog would significantly strengthen the service’s market position and reshape the US media landscape. The potential deal was even commented on by US President Donald Trump, who described it as problematic due to the resulting increase in Netflix’s market share. At the same time, US media note that one of PS’s owners, Larry Ellison, maintains close ties with Trump.