\n Netflix says it has \u201cdeclined to raise its offer for Warner Bros.\u201d after the Warner Bros. Discovery board determined that Paramount has submitted a \u201csuperior\u201d offer for the media giant.\n <\/p>\n
\n \u201cThe deal is no longer financially attractive, so we are declining to match the Paramount Skydance bid,\u201d the streamer said, suddenly ending a corporate tug-of-war.\n <\/p>\n
\n The announcement means that Paramount has suddenly moved much closer to taking over CNN and the rest of the assets owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, or WBD for short.\n <\/p>\n
\n The regulatory review process will still take several months at a minimum. But barring any further surprises, Paramount CEO David Ellison will assemble a sprawling entertainment and news empire with dozens of TV channels, multiple movie studios and two leading newsrooms.\n <\/p>\n
\n WBD CEO David Zaslav wished Netflix well and extended a friendly hand toward Paramount in a statement Thursday evening.\n <\/p>\n
\n \u201cOnce our Board votes to adopt the Paramount merger agreement, it will create tremendous value for our shareholders,\u201d Zaslav said, alluding to the fact that WBD\u2019s stock price more than doubled during the months-long bidding war. Paramount most recently offered $31 per share.\n <\/p>\n
\n \u201cWe are excited about the potential of a combined Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery,\u201d Zaslav added, \u201cand can\u2019t wait to get started working together telling the stories that move the world.\u201d\n <\/p>\n
\n Netflix\u2019s withdrawal \u2014 which has the effect of arguing that Paramount is overpaying for WBD \u2014 caused the company\u2019s shares to surge 9% on the news after-hours, showing that some investors were relieved by the decision.\n <\/p>\n
\n And it came on the same day that Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos held meetings at the White House.\n <\/p>\n
\n President Trump had previously indicated that he favored Paramount over Netflix, though he also sent mixed messages about the mega-merger.\n <\/p>\n
\n Last weekend, Trump publicly told Netflix to remove board member Susan Rice, a former Obama advisor, or \u201cpay the consequences\u201d \u2014 renewing the prospect that he would put his thumb on the corporate scale.\n <\/p>\n
\n Additionally, Trump said last December that it was \u201cimperative that CNN be sold<\/a>,\u201d and the deal with Netflix did not entail CNN being sold; instead, it would have been spun off into a new entity with WBD\u2019s other cable assets.\n <\/p>\n \n However, that corporate breakup plan may no longer be relevant. Paramount has repeatedly said that it was seeking to acquire all of WBD, including the cable assets, even though it cast doubt on the actual value of those assets.\n <\/p>\n