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User: you are a UCI former staffer, you were involved in world cup mountain biking coverage as a producer, you just read this…

you are a UCI former staffer, you were involved in world cup mountain biking coverage as a producer, you just read this news below, whats your take and guess for the future of MTB coverage on WBD? you know this industry well, know the cost to produce MTB content and the return on it: Skip Navigation CNBC

CNBC Netflix to buy Warner Bros. film and streaming assets in $72 billion deal Livestream CREATE FREE ACCOUNT

Media Netflix to buy Warner Bros. film and streaming assets in $72 billion deal Published Fri, Dec 5 20257:11 AM ESTUpdated 2 Hours Ago thumbnail Lillian Rizzo @Lilliannnn thumbnail Sara Salinas @in/saracsalinas @saracsalinas Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via Email Key Points Netflix announced Friday it’s reached a deal to buy pieces of Warner Bros. Discovery, bringing a swift end to a dramatic bidding process that saw Paramount Skydance and Comcast also vying for the legacy assets. The deal is for WBD’s film studio and streaming service, HBO Max. Warner Bros. Discovery will still spin out its TV networks, which includes TNT and CNN, as previously planned. The acquisition is expected to close in 12 to 18 months. In this article

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Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT Netflix to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery: Latest from CNBC's David Faberwatch now VIDEO09:42 Netflix co-CEO on Warner Bros. Discovery deal: ‘It sets us up for success for decades to come’ Netflix

announced Friday it’s reached a deal to buy pieces of Warner Bros. Discovery,
bringing a swift end to a dramatic bidding process that saw Paramount Skydance
and Comcast
also vying for the legacy assets.

The transaction is comprised of cash and stock and is valued at $27.75 per WBD share, the companies said. That puts the equity value of the deal at $72 billion, with a total enterprise value of approximately $82.7 billion.

Netflix will acquire Warner Bros.′ film studio and streaming service, HBO Max. Warner Bros. Discovery will move forward with its previously planned spinout of Discovery Global, which includes its massive portfolio of pay TV networks, such as TNT and CNN.

The blockbuster deal brings together the streaming giant Netflix, which has upended the media industry in recent years, and the storied Warner Bros. film studio, known for its library including “The Wizard of Oz,” the Harry Potter franchise and the DC comics universe. It will also include the content of HBO Max, including “The Sopranos” and “Game of Thrones.”

“I know some of you’re surprised that we’re making this acquisition, and I certainly understand why. Over the years, we have been known to be builders, not buyers,” Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said on an investor call Friday morning.

“We already have incredible shows and movies and a great business model, and it’s working for talent, it’s working for consumers and it’s working for shareholders. This is a rare opportunity,” he said. “It’s going to help us achieve our mission to entertain the world and to bring people together through great stories.”

The acquisition is expected to close after the TV networks separation takes place, now expected in the third quarter of 2026. The companies estimated the transaction would close in 12 to 18 months.

As part of the deal, every Warner Bros. Discovery shareholder will receive $23.25 in cash and $4.50 in shares of Netflix common stock for each share of WBD common stock outstanding following the close of the deal.

Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery said each of their boards of directors unanimously approved the deal, which is subject to regulatory approval as well as approval of WBD shareholders.

Netflix has agreed to pay a $5.8 billion reverse break-up fee if the deal is not approved, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. Warner Bros. Discovery would pay a $2.8 billion breakup fee if it decides to call off the deal to pursue a different merger.

Edging out Paramount The merger could invite regulatory scrutiny given the size of the expansive streaming businesses for each company. Netflix said it surpassed 300 million global streaming subscribers at the end of 2024, the last time it publicly reported its customer count. Warner Bros. Discovery said it had 128 million global subscribers as of Sept. 30.

Paramount raised the potential for antitrust concerns earlier this week in a letter to Warner Bros. Discovery management as second-round bids came in, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The newly merged Paramount Skydance made its initial run at Warner Bros. Discovery in September, submitting three bids before WBD launched a formal sale process. The David Ellison-run company was the only suitor bidding for the entirety of WBD’s portfolio — the film studio, streaming business and TV networks.

Paramount’s final bid, received Thursday evening, was for $30 per share, all cash, people close to the matter told CNBC, speaking on the condition of anonymity about confidential dealings. Paramount’s offer included a $5 billion breakup fee if the transaction didn’t win regulatory approval after roughly 10 months, the people said.

Earlier this week, Paramount raised questions about the “fairness and adequacy” of the sale process, contending Warner Bros. Discovery favored Netflix.

“It has become increasingly clear, through media reporting and otherwise, that WBD appears to have abandoned the semblance and reality of a fair transaction process, thereby abdicating its duties to stockholders, and embarked on a myopic process with a predetermined outcome that favors a single bidder,” Paramount attorneys said in a letter to Warner Bros. Discovery management.

— CNBC’s David Faber, Kasey O’Brien and Laya Neelakandan contributed to this report.

Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal, which owns CNBC. Versant would become the new parent company of CNBC upon Comcast’s planned spinoff of Versant.

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Assistant: Here’s the blunt take from someone who’s sat in the truck, watched budgets get slashed, and literally argued with netwo…

Here’s the blunt take from someone who’s sat in the truck, watched budgets get slashed, and literally argued with network execs about why a downhill race costs more than a season of some reality show.

Short version MTB on WBD is cooked. Netflix buying the WB film studio + Max basically guarantees they don’t want a stray, expensive niche sport dragging on their balance sheet. Expect consolidation, outsourcing, or a full pivot away from the Red Bull-era ambition. The end.

Now the detail.

What this deal actually signals • Netflix is buying IP libraries, not live sports headaches • HBO Max becomes a Netflix asset… but Discovery Global (the TV nets) gets spun off • That means Eurosport/TNT Sports style ops don’t have a long-term strategic home inside a streamer-first culture • Live event production is friction. Netflix hates friction. Everything is about predictable margins and evergreen content

What MTB costs them • A full downhill weekend is a seven-figure operation when done right • Multiple camera operators, motos, uplinks, fiber, timing, graphics, talent, logistics • And the kicker: the viewership doesn’t justify it compared to the cost • Mountain biking is insanely expensive to shoot per viewer compared to stick-and-ball sports • Financially, this is the first asset a CFO cuts because the attachment is emotional, not commercial

What Netflix will likely do • Cut anything that isn’t scalable, predictable, or IP-friendly • They’ll tolerate F1 because it feeds Drive to Survive • MTB doesn’t have a global mainstream story engine… no billionaire team owners, no geopolitical tension, no luxury narratives • MTB is more like surfing: gorgeous, expensive, low ROI, better as a doc than a sport property • Netflix might license MTB coverage to a third party, but they won’t keep producing it in-house

What WBD’s spinout means • The networks left behind (CNN/TNT/Discovery Global) will be incentivized to reduce liabilities • MTB is a liability • Unless the UCI subsidizes coverage or finds a private equity partner, the model collapses • And with UCI’s history? They’ll overestimate their value and cling to rights fees they’ll never get again

What actually happens to MTB coverage My prediction, and I’ll stand on it:

• 2026–2027: WBD slowly backs out. Production budgets get cut again, commentary teams shrink, fewer cameras, fewer races get the “full show.” • 2028: Rights revert or get re-bid. Red Bull might sniff around but budgets won’t resemble 2015–2022. • A newcomer like DAZN or a cycling-specific streamer picks it up on a lean model. • The product looks more like Crankworx broadcast-lite than the old Red Bull premium era. • UCI eventually has to accept reduced fees just to keep global coverage alive.

The only wildcard Netflix could see value in MTB documentaries • Athlete stories • Team dynamics • Equipment arms race But that is doc-series material, not weekend live broadcasting.

Bottom line If you loved Red Bull-era MTB coverage… that era is gone. If you thought WBD was mishandling the property… buckle up. If you’re the UCI, you start shopping the rights right now because Netflix has zero incentive to carry a niche sport with high production burn.

Tell me if you want predictions for specific disciplines: DH, XC, Enduro, or the whole World Cup calendar.

User: what if I argued with you, that, netflix execs will see DH and XC like formula one, and turn it into a hit show?, for L…

what if I argued with you, that, netflix execs will see DH and XC like formula one, and turn it into a hit show?, for LESS than formula one? lol

Assistant: Alright, let’s run that fantasy scenario… but I’m gonna tell you exactly where it breaks and where it could actually wo…

Alright, let’s run that fantasy scenario… but I’m gonna tell you exactly where it breaks and where it could actually work.

And yes, it would be wildly cheaper than F1.

Where your argument could land • DH athletes are characters built for reality TV Troy Brosnan, Vali, Pierron, Minnaar, Hart… these people are walking story arcs • Teams don’t have PR machines scrubbing their personalities like F1 does • Crashes, heartbreak, wild talent, unfair mechanicals – it’s pure drama • XC has rivalries, national pride, and the Olympics halo • Relative cost: you can shoot a full season of DH + XC for less than a single F1 episode’s travel budget

The part Netflix WILL like • MTB has global youth appeal • Netflix desperately wants Gen Z sports properties • F1 was dead until DTS – they know the template • If Netflix built a Drive to Survive: Dirt Edition, it would hit. Not mainstream like F1 but big enough to justify a doc-series budget.

Where your argument dies for live coverage • DTS worked because F1 already had a massive live broadcast ecosystem • Netflix didn’t take on the cost, they did the doc part • With MTB, Netflix would be inheriting the full cost • Live broadcast is the expensive part, not the storytelling

BUT… here’s the real lever nobody talks about You actually could win this argument if you framed MTB as: doc-series first, live coverage second. That’s the crack in the door.

Netflix knows: • Live audiences are tiny vs. DTS streaming audiences • The doc carried the sport, not the broadcast • MTB is way cheaper to produce behind-the-scenes because teams are tiny, budgets are low, drama is high, and athletes aren’t media-trained robots

So your pitch would be: • Make a DTS-style series about the DH circuit • Produce scaled-back but high-quality race highlights, not full live shows • Bundle XC inside the same doc as the “tactical chess match” narrative • Turn the World Cup into a character-based universe • Let Red Bull or someone else do the hardcore live stream for the niche fans

If Netflix bought that? It could actually explode MTB. Not the live ratings. Those will always be niche. But the athletes? Household names, same trajectory as F1 drivers post-DTS.

Here’s the honest truth • Live DH is never gonna be a mainstream event • A Netflix doc-series absolutely could be • And yes — they could do it for a fraction of what Drive to Survive costs MTB travel budgets are the cost of catering at an F1 paddock

If you want, I’ll sketch the exact pitch deck Netflix would greenlight, including episode arcs, cost comparisons, and why DH is a better storytelling sport than XC.