Create Account
Netflix Closes a Deal to Buy WBD; Paramount Steps Up
On December 5th, 2025, Netflix announced a deal to purchase Warner Bros Discovery (WBD), including all the IP rights, studios, and streaming audience of about 128 million subscribers. The announced $83 billion buyout equates to about $27.75 per share, but does not include Warner-owned cable channels like CNN and TNT.
The questions and discussions were ongoing when, on December 8th, Paramount complicated matters with a hostile takeover offer of $30 per share, coming out to an all-cash deal of $108 billion. This offer does include all of WBD’s cable channels.
There are many details that need unpacking here, so let’s break it down:
Anti-Trust Considerations
Firstly, any acquisition of WBD by anyone will need to pass through regulatory approval. Netflix is already the number one streaming service, with over 300 million subscribers in early 2025. The current US administration has expressed concern in the announced deal, with the FTC and DOJ investigating the acquisition.
Many other entities have joined in warning against the buyout, citing job eliminations, reduced wages, and higher prices for consumers. The Writers Guild of America, Directors Guild of America, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, and others have released statements, with the WGA simply stating: “This merger must be blocked.” The President has stated that there are potential “monopoly issues” and that he’d be involved with the proceedings.
Some outlets have speculated that the merger is a secondary objective for Netflix; by tying up one of their competitors in regulatory red tape for years, Netflix will effectively degrade the WBD brand and siphon potential talent and audience. Whether the acquisition is approved or not, Netflix wins by effectively destroying the #3 streaming platform.
Paramount’s Hostile Takeover Attempt
Paramount’s intrusion matters because it could drastically alter the shape of the CTV streaming wars. Now that Netflix and WBD have shaken hands behind closed doors, Paramount is making the matter public with a massive hostile takeover.
The takeover is considered “hostile” since the deal was made directly to shareholders, and is the second-largest hostile takeover offer in US history. Paramount is backed by several investment groups from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE, and Affinity Partners: founded by the President’s son-in-law. At time of writing, Netflix has not made any comment on the offer.
What Does it Mean for Advertisers?
It isn’t clear what would happen for the streaming apps; Netflix and HBO Max could be merged into one or kept separate to entice users with bundle deals. Either way, a successful merger with either Netflix or Paramount would likely take several major Hollywood studios out of the theater and into streaming content.
If the current deal goes through, then Netflix will be propelled into an even more commanding lead in the streaming space. CTV inventory will likely increase in price, while also taking better advantage of audience data for more precise targeting.
If Paramount wins over the shareholders and secures a deal, then the field is left open a little more. Paramount will suddenly become a major rival to Netflix and the two companies will be forced to step up their game for competition. Ideally, this would lead to lower prices as the streaming giants fight for audience eyeballs and advertising dollars.
The deal is expected to close within the next 18 months, awaiting the regulatory go-ahead and barring any shareholder overruling. If a deal goes forward, advertisers would be able to access inventory for two major streaming services through a unified advertising network.
The amount of money moving around shows that streaming is continuing to grow, and CTV advertising will continue to play a vital role in the growth of the industry. This is the latest (and biggest) in a long line of acquisitions and mergers across the CTV landscape which Genius Monkey discussed in a recent blog post.
The points made there apply here as well: mergers might not be great for the long-term health of advertising, but a good programmatic platform will give advertisers the flexibility to work around the pitfalls.
New Study Shows Quality > Quantity, Every Time
In an industry that emphasizes reach, it turns out that quality outperforms volume every time. It’s a philosophy Genius Monkey has preached since the beginning, but a new study has put some hard numbers to the ideas.
Over the course of 2025, the placement decisions of four major brands were carefully selected and studied, and the results were published in early December 2025. The brands that took a quality over quantity approach had, on average:
- 33% lower cost-per-action
- 32% reduction in CPMs
- ~5% higher return on ad spend.
So how can advertisers make the change from high-volume to high-efficiency? It doesn’t happen with the flick of a switch, and it all starts with investment: investing in good data, talent, and tools. Advertisers need to roll up their sleeves and dive into the data, looking at metrics beyond CPC.
By paying more attention to relationship metrics like cost-per-conversion, lifetime value, and the marketing efficiency ratio, advertisers can weed out less-efficient placements. It takes time and effort, but pays off with a reliable foundation to build and optimize around. A good place to start is by partnering with a data-driven programmatic platform like Genius Monkey, which is built with long-term advertising health at the forefront.
Genius Monkey: a Solid Foundation for the Digital Future
The Genius Monkey platform is a Meta-DSP, which stacks multiple networks and platforms to find the best supply to reach your audience effectively and efficiently. Advertisers can reach their audience via any device, and track the customer journey down to the individual touch-point level.
If you’re ready to increase your audience and decrease your cost per conversion, it’s time to get in touch with Genius Monkey today!
