Warner Bros. Discovery rejected Paramount’s bid — now it wants more bidders for some or all of the company.
Warner Bros. Discovery, the conglomerate that owns HBO, CNN, and the Warner Bros. studio, has officially hung a „for sale“ sign on itself.
But wait a minute. Didn’t Paramount owners Larry and David Ellison already offer to buy WBD? So wasn’t it already for sale?
Yes, they did. And yes, it was.
So the right way to view WBD’s announcement Tuesday morning, where it said it would conduct „a review of strategic alternatives to maximize shareholder value“ is primarily a formality: WBD has rejected Paramount’s bid to buy the company at a reported $20 a share, and wants to see if it can find other bidders to drive up the price. Bankers and lawyers are standing by, and WBD’s team would love to give potential bidders a tour of the property.
That’s it. That’s (mostly) the whole thing.
Next question: Are there any other bidders?
WBD says there are. But note the wording: The company mentioned „unsolicited interest the Company has received from multiple parties for both the entire company and Warner Bros.
