Warner Bros rejects Paramount’s $108 billion hostile bid in latest M&A twist

Dec 17 (Reuters) – Warner Bros Discovery’s board rejected Paramount Skydance’s $108.4 billion hostile bid, citing lack of financing assurances.

The decision to recommit to Netflix’s buyout offer marked the latest twist in the race for assets that include Warner Bros’ storied film and TV studio and its extensive film and television library.

Here is a timeline from the founding of Time Inc and Warner Bros to the company’s latest breakup and potential sale.

Date Event

1922 Time Inc was founded by Henry Luce and

Briton Hadden to house Time magazine, a

weekly news publication that made world

affairs accessible to the average reader.

The first issue of Time magazine was

published in March 1923.

1923 Warner Bros was founded by brothers Harry,

Albert, Sam and Jack Warner as a film studio

in Hollywood. It revolutionized cinema with

the introduction of synchronized sound in

films.

1969  Kinney National Company, a conglomerate that

later transitioned into media, buys Warner

Bros-Seven Arts and later spins off its

non-media businesses.

1972 HBO is founded by Charles Dolan with backing

from Time. It was the first U.S.

subscription-based cable network, offering

uncut, commercial-free movies and live

sports, pioneering premium cable television.

1990 Time Inc merges with Warner Communications

in a $14 billion deal, hailed as a “marriage

of content and distribution,” creating Time

Warner, then the largest media company in

the world.

1996  Time Warner merges with Turner Broadcasting,

gaining Cartoon Network, CNN, TNT and a vast

classic film library.

2000  Time Warner merges with AOL, forming AOL

Time Warner, the largest merger in history

at the time, aiming to merge traditional and

digital media.

2002 AOL Time Warner merger begins to unravel as

AOL’s value collapses with the launch of an

SEC investigation, prompted by allegations

of accounting irregularities and inflated

revenue reports at AOL.

2003 CEO Steve Case resigns from AOL Time Warner.

2004 Time Warner sells Warner Music to a private

equity group led by Edgar Bronfman Jr. for

$2.6 billion.

2009 Time Warner fully spins off Time Warner

Cable, which had already been partially

separated in 2007, ending its role in cable

distribution. 

2009  Time Warner spins off AOL. 

2013 Time Warner spins off Time, its magazine

division, which includes Time, People,

Fortune and Sports Illustrated, marking its

formal exit from publishing.

2016 AT&T announces acquisition of Time

Warner for $85 billion.

2018 AT&T completes its acquisition of Time

Warner after regulator’s approval, renaming

it WarnerMedia.

2021 AT&T announces it would spin off WarnerMedia

and merge it with Discovery Inc to create a

new standalone media company.

2022 WarnerMedia and Discovery complete their

merger in a $43 billion deal.

June 2025 Warner Bros Discovery announces it would

separate into two companies — one focusing

on streaming and studios businesses, while

the second will house its cable TV assets.

October Warner Bros Discovery’s board rejects a

2025 Paramount Skydance offer of nearly $60

billion, or $24 per share, a source familiar

with the matter exclusively tells Reuters.

The company says it is weighing a potential

sale amid interest from several suitors.

November Axios reports that Warner Bros Discovery’s

2025 board wants Paramount Skydance to sweeten

its bid to $30 per share, valuing the

company at $74.34 billion.

November Warner Bros Discovery receives preliminary

2025 buyout bids from Paramount Skydance, Comcast

and Netflix — who were asked to improve

their offers. 

December Warner Bros Discovery receives a second

2025 round of bids, including a mostly cash offer

from Netflix.

December Paramount Skydance accuses Warner Bros

2025 Discovery of running an unfair sale process

that favors Netflix over other bidders, CNBC

reports, citing a letter sent by the newly

merged media company.

December Netflix is in exclusive talks to

2025 buy Warner Bros Discovery’s film and

television studios along with its streaming

assets after offering $28 per share.

December Netflix agrees to buy Warner Bros

2025 Discovery’s film and TV studios and

streaming division for $72 billion, or

$27.75 per share.

December Paramount Skydance makes a hostile bid for

2025 Warner Bros Discovery in a deal valued at

$108.4 billion or $30 per share.

December Warner Bros Discovery’s board rejected

2025 Paramount Skydance’s hostile $108.4 billion

bid, saying it failed to provide adequate

financing assurances.

(Reporting by Kritika Lamba, Meghana Khare, Anhata Rooprai, and Arnav Mishra in Bengaluru; Editing by Leroy Leo and Arun Koyyur)