Paramount has launched a $108 billion all-cash tender offer to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery at $30 per share, with financial backing from Affinity Partners, the private equity firm led by Jared Kushner, according to a regulatory filing.
Paramount is telling WBD shareholders that it offers a smoother regulatory path than the company’s proposed transaction with Netflix. Paramount said its bid covers the entire Warner Bros. Discovery company, including the Global Networks segment, and delivers about $18 billion more in cash than Netflix’s mixed cash-and-stock offer. The company argues that Netflix’s proposal leaves shareholders exposed to stock volatility, regulatory uncertainty, and a leveraged cable spinoff.
Affinity Partners was not disclosed in Paramount’s original announcement, nor were the participating sovereign wealth funds from Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, and Qatar. Under the tender offer, those investors agreed to hold non-voting equity with no governance or board representation. All were part of Paramount’s December bid, though Tencent later withdrew.
Paramount said it submitted six proposals over 12 weeks without meaningful engagement from WBD’s board before taking the offer directly to shareholders. CEO David Ellison said the deal would strengthen Hollywood, expand theatrical output, and increase competition. The transaction would mark the second major takeover involving Kushner this year following his role in the Electronic Arts deal.
Read the Paramount Press Release
