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Saturday, February 28, 2026
Paramount acquires Warner Bros. in $110 bn mega-merger
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleUS media conglomerate Paramount Skydance announces that it will acquire Warner Bros. Discovery in a deal valuing the combined company at $110 billion, after beating Netflix in a bruising bidding war.
The agreement ends a five-month saga and creates an entertainment behemoth whose impact on a struggling media landscape — and connections to Donald Trump’s White House — will be closely scrutinized.
The merged entity will include CNN, CBS, HBO and Nickelodeon as well as some of Hollywood’s most valuable franchises, including Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, the DC Universe, Mission Impossible and SpongeBob SquarePants.
Under the terms of the agreement, Paramount will pay $31.00 per share in cash for all outstanding Warner Bros. shares, implying an equity value of $81 billion — and $110 billion when including the mountain of debt Paramount will take on.
The transaction has been unanimously approved by both companies’ boards and is expected to close in the third quarter of 2026, the companies said.
“Our pursuit of Warner Bros. Discovery has been guided by a clear purpose: to honor the legacy of two iconic companies while accelerating our vision of building a next-generation media and entertainment company,” says Paramount chairman and CEO David Ellison.
The deal closes a battle that ended Thursday when Netflix walked away, unwilling to match Paramount’s latest offer.
The Times of Israel Community.