{"id":332002,"date":"2025-12-05T12:29:11","date_gmt":"2025-12-05T12:29:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/332002\/"},"modified":"2025-12-05T12:29:11","modified_gmt":"2025-12-05T12:29:11","slug":"netflix-to-buy-warner-bros-and-hbo-max","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/332002\/","title":{"rendered":"Netflix to buy Warner Bros. and HBO Max"},"content":{"rendered":"

In a watershed move, Warner Bros. Discovery announced Friday it has agreed to sell its streaming and studios assets to Netflix in a deal valued at $82.7 billion, setting the stage for one of the most sweeping and consequential mergers in modern Hollywood history.<\/p>\n

If approved by federal regulators, the transaction promises to create a new entertainment and media behemoth, uniting the world\u2019s largest streaming destination with a storied 102-year-old film studio.<\/p>\n

Warner Bros.\u2019 portfolio includes HBO, the HBO Max streaming platform and the \u201cHarry Potter\u201d movie franchise. Netflix, home of \u201cStranger Things\u201d and \u201cSquid Game,\u201d reaches more than 300 million paid subscribers across over 190 countries.<\/p>\n

Netflix\u2019s takeover of Warner Bros. ushers in a new era for Hollywood, which has evolved from a business focused on theatrical exhibition to an increasingly digital-first industry. The acquisition cements Netflix\u2019s market dominance and expands the company\u2019s content library as it faces off against tech giants like YouTube and TikTok.<\/p>\n

The deal would give Netflix access to popular and lucrative intellectual property, including DC Comics characters such as Batman and Superman; the \u201cGame of Thrones\u201d TV saga; and a vast trove of titles stretching from \u201cCasablanca\u201d and \u201cDirty Harry\u201d to \u201cDune\u201d and \u201cBarbie.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the lead-up to the announcement, Netflix attempted to reassure the creative community by reportedly promising to release Warner Bros. movies in brick-and-mortar cinemas. But many filmmakers are skeptical of Netflix\u2019s business model, which prioritizes streaming distribution. <\/p>\n

Warner Bros. Discovery, weighed down by billions in debt and lackluster streaming growth, formally put itself up for sale in the fall. The company\u2019s suitors included Paramount, Skydance, and Comcast, which each made bids in a largely secretive process. (Comcast owns NBCUniversal, the parent company of NBC News.)<\/p>\n

The tie-up would not include Warner-owned cable channels like CNN and TNT.<\/p>\n

Paramount was widely seen as the frontrunner in the bidding war because of the company\u2019s deep pockets and political ties. David Ellison is the son of Larry Ellison, the Silicon Valley magnate and friend of President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n

The corporate union between Warner Bros. and Netflix still faces potential antitrust scrutiny and political challenges.<\/p>\n

In late November, three senators \u2014 Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut \u2014 sent a letter to the Justice Department Antitrust Division warning that any potential Warner Bros. merger could be tainted by \u201cpolitical favoritism and corruption.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., sent a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi the same month, cautioning that merging Netflix with HBO Max would create a company with a more than \u201c30 percent share of the streaming market: a threshold traditionally viewed as presumptively problematic under antitrust law.\u201d<\/p>\n

In early December, an anonymous group of \u201cconcerned feature film producers\u201d reportedly sent a letter to Congress urging them to go publicly against Netflix\u2019s bid and give the potential deal \u201cthe highest level of antitrust scrutiny,\u201d according to Variety<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The deal could also draw attention from state regulators.<\/p>\n

In a statement, a spokesperson for the California attorney general\u2019s office said: \u201cThe Department of Justice believes further consolidation in markets that are central to American economic life \u2014 whether in the financial, airline, grocery, or broadcasting and entertainment markets \u2014 does not serve the American economy, consumers, or competition well.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are committed to protecting consumers and California\u2019s economy from consolidation we find unlawful,\u201d the spokesperson added.<\/p>\n

Warner Bros. has fallen under various corporate owners since it was founded in 1923, and the company\u2019s recent history is especially complex. It was acquired by AT&T for $85 billion in 2016. AT&T then spun off the Warner Bros. assets, which were merged with Discovery in 2022.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Daniel Arkin is a senior reporter at NBC News.<\/p>\n

Rebecca Keegan contributed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In a watershed move, Warner Bros. Discovery announced Friday it has agreed to sell its streaming and studios…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":332003,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[4,450,451,3,452,453],"class_list":{"0":"post-332002","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-breaking-news","8":"tag-breaking-news","9":"tag-breakingnews","10":"tag-headlines","11":"tag-news","12":"tag-top-stories","13":"tag-topstories"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/332002","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=332002"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/332002\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/332003"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=332002"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=332002"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=332002"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}