Netflix buys Warner Bros Discovery for $72 billion
Netflix has agreed to acquire Warner Bros Discovery. The historic merger will bring together the global streaming leader and one of Hollywood's oldest studios.
Netflix has agreed to acquire Warner Bros Discovery. The historic merger will bring together the global streaming leader and one of Hollywood's oldest studios.
Under the deal announced Friday, Warner Bros. shareholders will receive $27.75 per share in cash and Netflix shares, Bloomberg reports .
The total equity value of the deal is $72 billion, while the enterprise value of the deal is about $82.7 billion.
Warner Bros. must spin off its network division, which includes cable channels CNN, TBS and TNT, before the sale can be completed. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2026.
The acquisition marks a dramatic strategic shift for Netflix, which has never made deals of this magnitude. The streaming pioneer became Hollywood's most valuable company without its own library or studio, but by licensing programming from others and expanding into original content.
With the purchase, Netflix becomes the owner of HBO, along with its library of hit shows like “The Sopranos” and “The White Lotus.” Warner Bros. assets also include its large studios in Burbank, California, and a vast film and television archive that includes “Harry Potter” and “Friends.”
Warner Bros. put itself up for sale in October after receiving interest from several parties. In addition to Netflix, the company was also interested in Paramount Skydance and Comcast.
Netflix, founded nearly three decades ago as a mail-order DVD rental service, ended 2024 with revenue of $39 billion. Warner Bros., founded in the 1920s, also had sales exceeding $39 billion.
Warner Bros.' iconic content gives Netflix a strong programming base to maintain its edge over rivals such as Walt Disney Co. and Paramount. The deal could face antitrust scrutiny in the United States and Europe and has already raised some concerns.
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