Netflix and Paramount are battling for more than just Warner Bros

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. THE CREDITS were ready to roll. Netflix, the world’s biggest streaming company, had announced on December 5th that it was to acquire most of Warner Bros Discovery, one of the biggest names in old-fashioned moviemaking, in a deal valued at $83bn.

But on December 8th Paramount, a much smaller rival, pressed pause on the transaction. Sidestepping Warner’s management, it appealed directly to shareholders to accept its alternative offer of $108bn for the whole company, promising a deal that is “superior to Netflix in every dimension". The Looney-Tunes sums could yet grow even higher: Paramount’s owners, the Ellison family, have made clear they are willing to shell out more if necessary; Netflix, whose market value is over $400bn, can also afford to bid more if it wants to.

But the main difference between the bidders is not the offer price. Netflix and Paramount see different things in their target. The question of who gets Warner Bros will shape the future of Hollywood, and of entertainment more widely.

For months Paramount was the favourite to buy the century-old studio. David Ellison, a 42-year-old Hollywood producer, acquired Paramount in August for $8bn, backed by his father Larry Ellison, whose stake in Oracle, a software company, has made him the world’s second-richest person. Scarcely had they got the keys to Paramount’s Melrose Avenue lot when they announced that they would go after Warner too, to build a media colossus.

The Ellisons had the money, the motive and a friendly relationship with President Donald Trump. What could stand in their way? Netflix. On December 4th, as David Ellison sent increasingly frantic texts to Warner’s management, it emerged that Netflix was the