Trump Declares Non-Intervention in Warner Bros Acquisition Case

Summary

Donald Trump has stated he will not intervene in the acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD).Zhitong This follows his previous indications of disapproval for Netflix’s (NFLX) bid, where he shared articles opposing the deal. The acquisition is a competitive situation, with Paramount (PARA) also bidding for WBD.观点网 Trump’s change in stance comes amid scrutiny over his personal investments in both Netflix and Warner Bros. bonds, raising conflict of interest concerns.Zhitong Netflix’s $82.7 billion all-cash offer for WBD’s studio and streaming assets has the WBD board’s support and is currently under DOJ review.Zaobao+ 3

Impact Analysis

This is a complete reversal and a major green light for the Netflix-WBD deal. Just a few weeks ago, Trump was signaling opposition by promoting articles against a “Netflix Cultural Takeover.” Now he’s hands-off. Why the change? It’s almost certainly about his personal conflict of interest—he reportedly bought bonds in both companies, making any intervention politically toxic for him.Zhitong This statement isn’t an endorsement, but it removes the single biggest political risk that was hanging over the deal. For Paramount, this is bad news; a key part of their strategy was likely hoping for a political block of the Netflix bid. The path is now much clearer for Netflix’s $82.7B offer.Zaobao+ 2 The merger arb spread on WBD should tighten significantly. This is a clear signal to get long WBD, as the deal’s probability just shot up.