Paramount Updates Its Offer for Warner Bros. Discovery Amid Ongoing Talks

Paramount has updated its bid to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, formally revising its all-cash takeover proposal amid competition with Netflix. The move follows WBD’s decision to endorse Netflix’s rival transaction and recommend shareholders reject Paramount’s earlier offer.

WBD previously announced an agreement to sell its studio assets and Max streaming business to Netflix. That deal valued the package at $82.7 billion in enterprise terms. WBD’s board cited concerns around certainty and structure when dismissing Paramount’s initial tender offer. In response, Paramount reaffirmed a $30-per-share, fully financed cash bid for 100 percent of WBD. The amended proposal directly addresses funding questions raised by WBD’s directors.

A key change involves a strengthened equity backstop. Larry Ellison, the founder of Oracle and controlling shareholder of Paramount, provided an irrevocable personal guarantee covering $40.4 billion of equity financing and related claims. Paramount also pledged not to alter or revoke assets held in the Ellison family trust during the process.

To support that claim, Paramount released documentation showing the trust holds roughly 1.16 billion Oracle shares. The company argues that disclosure removes doubts about financing certainty. Paramount also adjusted operational terms. The revised offer provides greater flexibility regarding interim operations, debt refinancing, and representations. It increased the regulatory reverse termination fee to $5.8 billion, matching protections offered under the Netflix structure.

One condition remains. Paramount requires WBD to retain full ownership of its Global Networks business. It values that unit as “stub equity,” contrasting it with the limited transparency around debt adjustments in Netflix’s proposal.

The tender offer deadline has been extended to January 21, 2026. As of December 19, fewer than 400,000 WBD shares had been tendered. Chairman and CEO of Paramount, David Ellison, continues to pitch the revised bid as superior in value and long-term strategy, urging shareholders to reconsider their options.

Larry Ellison gives $40.4 billion guarantee for Paramount bid for Warner Bros pic.twitter.com/UmAcq8oEtr

— Yahoo Finance (@YahooFinance) December 22, 2025