Netflix has revised its $82.7bn (£61.5bn) takeover offer for Warner Bros Discovery into an all-cash deal, aiming to speed up approval and block a rival bid from Paramount Skydance.
The offer keeps the valuation at $27.75 per share but removes the shares component, giving WBD investors greater certainty and potentially allowing a shareholder vote as early as April. Netflix said the WBD board continues to unanimously support the deal.
Under the agreement, WBD shareholders would also receive shares in a separate global networks business, including CNN and Discovery Channel, which Netflix is not acquiring.
Paramount is pursuing a $108.4bn hostile takeover and has sought to challenge the Netflix deal through legal action and a potential proxy fight, but a Delaware judge has already rejected its latest lawsuit.
If WBD walks away from the Netflix agreement, it would owe a $2.8bn breakup fee, alongside other costs the board says make Paramount’s offer riskier.
The deal would give Netflix control of key assets such as Warner Bros studios and HBO, strengthening its position in global entertainment.
