Paramount grows more confident Warner Bros. Discovery will drop Netflix bid: sources

There is a growing sense of confidence within Paramount Skydance that Warner Bros. Discovery will soon terminate its deal with Netflix and reignite a bidding war for the company, sources have revealed to The Post.

The decision to potentially reopen the bidding process is not solely based on Paramount’s slightly improved offer of $78 billion in all-cash, but also concerns about valuation and regulatory uncertainties.

Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) investors are increasingly skeptical about the $72 billion deal with Netflix facing regulatory challenges and are questioning the valuation of the offer.

According to a source close to the Paramount Skydance bid, “The numbers don’t add up and there’s no way this gets approved on antitrust grounds.”

While there has been no official word from WBD on reopening the bidding process, speculation suggests that WBD may be leaking information to protect itself legally and may ultimately settle on the Netflix offer.

Paramount has filed a lawsuit against WBD, alleging bias in favor of Netflix due to a friendship between WBD CEO David Zaslav and Netflix chief Ted Sarandos.

The regulatory challenges faced by Netflix could delay any potential deal, especially with the recent resignation of DOJ antitrust chief Gail Slater.

Investors are showing signs of shifting sentiments towards Paramount Skydance’s bid, as concerns mount over the valuation and debt associated with WBD’s cable spinoff.

The metrics of the Netflix deal become more complex when considering regulatory concerns about pricing power and control over multiple streaming services.