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Netflix announced its official win in the acquisition race for Warner Bros and HBO, a move that could lead to the merger of one of the largest streaming platforms in the world with one of the oldest film and television production companies.
A deal of this size will have a profound impact on the future of Hollywood, but it will first be subject to rigorous regulatory reviews in the United States and a number of countries, according to CNN. The announcement came on Friday morning, as Netflix revealed its agreement to purchase Warner Bros studios and their assets, including the HBO Max platform, for $72 billion, rising to $82.7 billion when debts are included. The news caused a big surprise within the cinematic circles and opened the door to broad questions about the future of Warner Bros Discovery, the parent company of CNN. In return, Warner Bros Discovery confirmed that it is proceeding with its plan to split the company into two entities listed on the stock exchange in 2026. After the split, Netflix will move to acquire the entity that includes Warner's assets, while the second entity, Discovery Global, will include CNN channels and the rest of the group's cable channels. The company expects this split to take effect during the summer of 2026.
