Warner Bros. Discovery Is for Sale After All, as “Multiple Parties” Circle

Sounds like Warner Bros. Discovery is for sale after all.

Amid swirling reports of bidding interest by Paramount Global, the WBD board of directors says is it “has initiated a review of strategic alternatives to maximize shareholder value.” That’s the first acknowledgement of a (metaphorical) “For Sale” sign hanging from the iconic WB water tower.

In a press release on Tuesday morning, the Warner Bros. Discovery board of directors said it has received “unsolicited interest” from “multiple parties.” And it’s listening.

“Strategic options” include continuing with the previously announced split and spin, a la NBCUniversal and Versant, a “transaction for the entire company” or “separate transactions for its Warner Bros. and/or Discovery Global businesses.” There is even the potential for “an alternative separation structure that would enable a merger of Warner Bros. and spin-off of Discovery Global to our shareholders.”

Basically, it’s all on the table.

“We continue to make important strides to position our business to succeed in today’s evolving media landscape by advancing our strategic initiatives, returning our studios to industry leadership, and scaling HBO Max globally,” David Zaslav, the president and CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, said in a statement. “We took the bold step of preparing to separate the Company into two distinct, leading media companies, Warner Bros. and Discovery Global, because we strongly believed this was the best path forward.”

“It’s no surprise that the significant value of our portfolio is receiving increased recognition by others in the market,” Zaslav added. “After receiving interest from multiple parties, we have initiated a comprehensive review of strategic alternatives to identify the best path forward to unlock the full value of our assets.”

Earlier this month, Bloomberg reported that new Paramount owner David Ellison made a $20-per-share bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, which was dismissed. It is currently unclear who is making these other “unsolicited bids,” although David Faber at CNBC mentioned on-air Tuesday that Comcast and Netflix have made inquiries. THR has reached out for comment to both of those companies.

“Our decision to initiate this review underscores the Board’s commitment to considering all opportunities to determine the best value for our shareholders,” Samuel A. Di Piazza, Jr., chair of the Warner Bros. Discovery board of directors, said. “We continue to believe that our planned separation to create two distinct, leading media companies will create compelling value. That said, we determined taking these actions to broaden our scope is in the best interest of shareholders.”

There is no deadline for this review; WBD is continuing to work toward its previously announced separation, which will keep its studios, HBO and HBO Max in one bucket (led by Zaslav) and boot its basic cable channels (the Turner channels and Discovery channels) and streamer Discovery+ to a new company led by current Warner Bros. Discovery chief financial officer Gunnar Wiedenfels.

Also on Tuesday morning, Warner Bros. Discovery announced a price hike for its HBO Max streaming service. So, there’s a dollar extra per month per subscriber in value for a buyer!