Netflix and Paramount have separately met with European Commission officials this week to discuss their plans for Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) should either company win the battle to gain control.
According to Semafor, discussions centred on antitrust issues, with regulators reportedly expressing their concerns over Netflix’s potential scale in Europe should it successfully complete its planned acquisition of WBD’s film and TV studios, HBO and HBO Max.
No further details about the meetings have been revealed, or whether either company is expected to meet with European regulators again anytime soon.
The battle to gain control of WBD continues to rage. According to Bloomberg, Netflix is planning to switch to an all-cash offer for the company in a bid to accelerate the acquisition as well as encourage WBD shareholders to accept its bid.
Since WBD accepted Netflix’s original offer in early December, Paramount has repeatedly attempted to muscle in with its own bid.
Paramount owner David Ellison and his father Larry, have launched legal action against WVD for more details about their valuation of the Netflix transaction. They are also said to be intending to nominate directors to the company’s board in a bid to scupper Netflix’s deal.
