Netflix has abandoned its proposed takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, and now it looks like Paramount will be able to close the deal. The $111 billion acquisition is one of the largest media mergers in history, and will allow Paramount to compete with the likes of Netflix and Amazon.
If the deal goes through, Paramount will buy all of Warner Bros. Discovery studios, including HBO. The popular television studio will greatly enhance Paramount’s platform, which Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison predicts could give the company more than 200 million subscribers.
Paramount Set for Warner Bros. Discovery Merger
Paramount has been one of the smaller players in the booming streaming era so far, but a major merger with Warner Bros. Discovery will shake things up completely. Initially, Netflix had proposed a deal and was close to finalizing it, but Paramount swooped in and snapped up the streaming giant at the last hour. If it hadn’t done this, Netflix would be an unbeatable force in streaming. However, now Paramount seems to be one of the whales.
The fact that the deal is worth a whopping $111 billion highlights the impact it will have on Paramount. As well as strengthening its broadcast platform, it will allow the company to explore business franchises across different media including cinema and sports.
Turning Old Exhibits Into Long-Term Assets
The fact that Paramount will be able to add HBO’s catalog to its own is something that will put it up there with the major streaming platforms. HBO is home to some of the biggest shows of all time, including The Wire, The Sopranos, and Boardwalk Empire.
In addition, it has various successful franchises that are front and center in the mainstream. Game of Thrones, for example, may have ended over six years ago, but it still lives on in popular culture in various ways.
Along with two ongoing spinoffs, House of the Dragon and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, there’s the space game Game of Thrones. That title can be found among various other fictional games, with the ongoing Age of the Gods mission sharing many similarities with the official HBO title. More opportunities for slots and franchise-based mobile games as well, which can help attract more viewers.
Paramount can turn these ongoing franchises and older offerings into long-term assets. Along with making them all available on its own platform, it can tap into potential reboots of classics or create related spinoffs. The fact that it also has access to new HBO content that hasn’t been created yet is another big advantage, as it can position itself as a platform where high quality is always guaranteed.
Over time, access to HBO’s content will be worth billions to Paramount. As well as making the platform a direct competitor to the likes of Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, it will open up a host of new franchising opportunities that could lead to new revenue streams.
