Netflix announces deal to buy WB and HBO

[The Soloist]

Netflix has triumphed in the bidding war for Warner Bros. and HBO, announcing a deal that could combine two of the three biggest streamers with one of the largest traditional movie and television studios.

If the deal goes through, it will fundamentally reshape Hollywood at a precarious time for the entertainment business. It would give Netflix control of some of the industry’s most valuable intellectual property, including Batman, Harry Potter and Game of Thrones, and would give a company that historically had very little interest in movie theaters oversight of the studio that put more butts in seats than any other this year.

https://www.cnn.com/2025/12/05/media/netflix-deal-warner-bros

 

[darjr]

Just wild.

 

[Morrus]

With every month that passes, Weyland Yutani gets ever closer.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

At last, David Zaslav has succeeded in his ultimate goal and driven his car fully off the road.

 

[Gradine]

 

[Kaodi]

I feel like this would be the appropriate time for another Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa one liner: "It has begun!"

My first reaction when I saw the news earlier was, "Are you kidding me?"

 

[The Firebird]

I can't imagine this will result in a better experience for viewers. There have been a lot of big bets on shows to capture the market, even if they didn't all turn out.

 

[Cruentus]

I'll be priming the "cancel Netflix" muscles until I see what censorship has to occur, and what pockets lined (sorry, donations to 'funds' occur), to actually make the merger go through.

I certainly wouldn't mind having fewer than 30 streaming services to go through to find what I'd like to watch, but mergers like this also tend to be bad for competition (as usual).