Netflix walks away from its deal to buy Warner Bros. after Paramount came back with a better offer | The Verge

Skip to main contentThe homepageThe homepageNavigation DrawerLogin / Sign UpcloseSubscribeComments DrawerCommentsLoading commentsGetting the conversation ready...StreamingNewsHBONetflix walks away from its deal to buy Warner Bros. after Paramount came back with a better offerThe streaming giant isn’t going to match the ‘superior’ bid made by Paramount.The streaming giant isn’t going to match the ‘superior’ bid made by Paramount.by Emma RothFeb 26, 2026, 11:10 PM UTCImage: The VergePart OfNetflix isn’t buying Warner Bros: all of the latest updatessee all updates Emma Roth is a news writer who covers the streaming wars, consumer tech, crypto, social media, and much more. Previously, she was a writer and editor at MUO.Netflix has dropped its $83 billion deal to acquire the Warner Bros. studio, HBO, and its streaming service HBO Max. In an announcement on Thursday, co-CEOs Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters say the streamer is “declining to match” the new bid made by Paramount:The transaction we negotiated would have created shareholder value with a clear path to regulatory approval. However, we’ve always been disciplined, and at the price required to match Paramount Skydance’s latest offer, the deal is no longer financially attractive, so we are declining to match the Paramount Skydance bid.We believe we would have been strong stewards of Warner Bros.’ iconic brands, and that our deal would have strengthened the entertainment industry and preserved and created more production jobs in the U.S. But this transaction was always a ‘nice to have’ at the right price, not a ‘must have’ at any price.RelatedWarner Bros. Discovery agrees to $110 billion Paramount mergerThough WBD agreed to its deal with Netflix last December, the David Ellison-led Paramount came back with a hostile bid to take over the entire company — not just parts of it. After a barrage of bids and even a lawsuit, WBD eventually gave Paramount one last chance to present its “best and final offer.”Now, WBD says Paramount’s $31 per share all-cash bid represents a “superior” proposal. Under the deal, Paramount will cover the $7 billion regulatory termination fee in case its deal with WBD doesn’t close, along with the $2.87 billion termination fee it must pay Netflix for abandoning its deal. It also includes “a daily ‘ticking fee’ of $0.25 per quarter” that will “accrue after September 30, 2026, until the consummation of the Paramount transaction.”In January, Netflix revised its acquisition agreement to an all-cash deal in response to increasing pressure from Paramount, while Sarandos testified before the Senate earlier this month to address concerns about the megamerger.Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.Emma RothHBONetflixNewsStreamingMore in: Netflix isn’t buying Warner Bros: all of the latest updatesWarner Bros. Discovery agrees to $110 billion Paramount mergerEmma RothFeb 27Warner Bros. says Paramount’s latest offer is superior to its current deal with Netflix.Richard LawlerFeb 26Paramount CEO David Ellison is Sen. Lindsey Graham’s guest at the State of the Union.Lauren FeinerFeb 25Most PopularMost PopularPhones are going to get weird next weekNetflix walks away from its deal to buy Warner Bros. after Paramount came back with a better offerWhy no magnets in Galaxy S26? Samsung R&D chief explainsBurger King will use AI to check if employees say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’The Trump phone sure looks a lot like this HTC handsetAdvertiser Content FromThis is the title for the native adMore in StreamingA legendary weather app makes a comebackWarner Bros. Discovery agrees to $110 billion Paramount mergerAmazon’s Fire TV Stick 4K Plus gets a better interface and a 40 percent discountHere’s your first look at Kratos in Amazon’s God of War showNetflix isn’t buying Warner Bros: all of the latest updatesNetflix’s F1 series Drive to Survive will stream on Apple TV, tooA legendary weather app makes a comebackDavid PierceTwo hours agoWarner Bros. Discovery agrees to $110 billion Paramount mergerEmma RothFeb 27Amazon’s Fire TV Stick 4K Plus gets a better interface and a 40 percent discountSheena VasaniFeb 27Here’s your first look at Kratos in Amazon’s God of War showAndrew WebsterFeb 27Netflix isn’t buying Warner Bros: all of the latest updatesVerge StaffFeb 27Netflix’s F1 series Drive to Survive will stream on Apple TV, tooJay PetersFeb 26Advertiser Content FromThis is the title for the native adTop StoriesFeb 27Smuggling podcasts into a Burmese prison8:00 AM UTCTenways nearly perfects the shareable city e-bikeFeb 27Warner Bros. Discovery agrees to $110 billion Paramount merger58 minutes agoXiaomi’s Leica Leitzphone mostly earns the nameTwo hours agoA legendary weather app makes a comebackFeb 27We don’t have to have unsupervised killer robots