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Warner Bros. Says Paramount is open to raising offer and restarts talks - Barrons. com

Warner Bros. Discovery is reopening talks with Paramount Skydance, giving the CBS owner seven days to submit its best and final offer.

Warner said on Tuesday that a senior representative for Paramount had signaled it would be willing to raise its offer to $31 a share from $30 a share if Warner agreed to restart negotiations. That offer doesn't constitute Paramount's best and final bid.

Warner is giving Paramount until Feb. 23 to address key issues and confirm the terms of its offer. Paramount didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from Barron's.

Paramount sweetened its offer for Warner last week to include a so-called ticking fee of 25 cents a share, payable to shareholders for each quarter it hasn't closed the deal beyond the end of 2026. Warner said on Tuesday that the Paramount representative had reached out following the enhanced offer.

Warner also said on Tuesday that it would hold a special meeting of shareholders to vote on the merger with Netflix on March 20 . Warner's board is still recommending that shareholders back the video streamer's bid.

Netflix agreed in December to buy Warner's streaming and studios assets for $27.75 a share, with cable being spun out to investors. It made the offer all-cash last month.

Netflix said in a news release that it is confident that its own offer "provides superior value and certainty" but wants to put an end to the "ongoing distraction...caused by PSKY's antics."

"We granted WBD a narrow seven-day waiver of certain obligations under our merger agreement to allow them to engage with PSKY to fully and finally resolve this matter," Netflix added.

Warner shares rose 2.5% to $28.70 ahead of Tuesday's opening bell. Paramount climbed 3.8%, and Netflix added 0.7%.