Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) lawyers have responded to a letter from Paramount that was leaked to the press in which David Ellison’s company expressed concern to the WBD board over what it called a “myopic” bidding process with “a predetermined outcome that favors a single bidder”.
The letter from Paramount’s lawyers comes days after WBD accepted second round bids from Paramount, Netflix and Comcast for all of the company or parts of it.
An excerpt cited a report in the German outlet Handelsblatt noting that a WBD delegation led by WBD’s president of International Business Gerhard Zieler met with E.U. Commission vice president Hena Virkkunen, when concerns were raised that a deal with Paramount could lead to “excessive media concentration”.
Paramount lawyers said if the meeting took place, it demonstrated “a tacit resistance to, if not active sabotage of, a Paramount offer”.
The letter went on to say the report was not an isolated incident “regarding purported WBD resistance to a combination with Paramount”, adding: “Several U.S. media outlets have reported on the enthusiasm by WBD management for a transaction with Netflix, and on statements by management that a transaction between WBD and Netflix would be a “slam dunk,” while also referring to Paramount’s bid in a negative light.”
WBD lawyers replied on Thursday morning, saying: “We have received your December 3, 2025 letter to David Zaslav [WBD CEO] and others on behalf of Paramount Skydance Corporation. We have shared the letter with the members of the Warner Bros. Discovery board of directors. Please be assured that the WBD Board attends to its fiduciary obligations with the utmost care, and that they have fully and robustly complied with them and will continue to do so.”
More to follow…
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