By David Goldman, CNN
Photo: Fernando Gutierrez-Juarez / dpa Picture-Alliance via AFP
Paramount has gone straight to Warner Bros Discovery's shareholders with an all-cash offer in an extraordinary endeavour to gain control of Hollywood's most sought-after prize - a bid that Netflix beat last week.
Paramount was widely expected to be the frontrunner for Warner Bros. But WBD opted instead for Netflix, which it said offered a more lucrative deal. The proposed marriage with Netflix caught Hollywood insiders by surprise - including Paramount CEO David Ellison, who still contends that his deal was the better offer.
"We're sitting on Wall Street, where cash is still king," Ellison told CNBC in an interview this week. "We are offering shareholders $17.6 billion (NZD$30.5b) more cash than the deal they currently have signed up with Netflix. And we believe when they see what is currently in our offer, then that's what they'll vote for."
Paramount offered $30.90 (NZD$52) per share in an all-cash deal for the entire company, while Netflix offered $27.75 (NZD$48) for Warner Bros.
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