Paramount reiterates its offer for Warner Bros is better than Netflix deal

Jan 8 (Reuters) – Paramount Skydance reiterated that its $108.4 billion bid for Warner Bros Discovery was superior to rival Netflix on Thursday, adding that the value of the cable spinoff central to the Netflix offer is effectively worthless. Warner Bros Discovery's board had on Wednesday rejected Paramount's amended offer that included a $40 billion in equity personally guaranteed by Oracle's co-founder Larry Ellison, the father of Paramount CEO David Ellison, and $54 billion in debt to finance the deal. Paramount's offer values each Warner Bros share at $30 for the entire company, compared with Netflix's $27.75 a share cash-and-stock deal for Warner Bros's studios and streaming assets. Warner Bros has argued that Paramount's revised December 22 bid "remains inadequate", citing uncertainty regarding the CNN parent's ability to finalize the transaction, and the exposure of WBD shareholders to significant risks and costs in the event of deal failure. The board said Paramount's offer hinges on "an extraordinary amount of debt financing" that heightens the risk of closing. Netflix's deal requires no equity financing and is backed by $59 billion in debt from banks including Wells Fargo, BNP Paribas and HSBC Holdings. Warner Bros Chairman Samuel Di Piazza has said the company is not currently negotiating with Paramount but is open to a deal if Paramount can "put something on the table that is compelling." Some Warner Bros investors, including the 7th-largest shareholder Pentwater Capital, have said that the board was making a mistake not engaging with Paramount. (Reporting by Deborah Sophia in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)

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