Netflix ups its bid as battle for Warner Discovery heats up

Netflix has raised its offer for Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) as it tries to outdo Paramount and Comcast.

The streamer submitted a second, mostly cash bid on Monday and is lining up tens of billions in financing to secure Warner’s studios, vast content library, and HBO Max.

Paramount also improved its bid and wants the entire company, including cable networks such as CNN, TBS, and TNT. Comcast submitted a fresh offer too, but it’s targeting only the studio and streaming assets, not the cable channels.

WBD opened the door to a sale in October after rebuffing multiple unsolicited bids from Paramount. It hopes to finish the auction by Christmas and plans to split into two companies: one for studios and streaming, the other for global cable networks.

A Netflix deal may face tough US regulatory scrutiny, with officials already flagging competition concerns.