"Netflix's ( NASDAQ:NFLX ) $72 billion bid to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery 's ( ) movie studios and streaming assets promises to reshape Hollywood. Valued at $27.75 per share in cash and stock, the deal targets Warner's film production, HBO, and Max platform, with Warner Bros. cable networks like CNN spinning off into Discovery Global by mid-2026."
"Theater attendance has plummeted, turning once-vibrant cinemas into echoes of their former selves. Data from TheNumbers.com reveals a stark trend: in 2002, U.S. audiences bought 1.57 billion tickets, the modern peak. By 2019, that fell to 1.23 billion - a 22% drop over 17 years. The pandemic crisis amplified the decline, with just 232 million tickets in 2020. Recovery has been feeble as only 761 million tickets were sold in 2024, 52% below 2002 levels and 38% under 2019."
"High ticket prices are compounding the problem. Families are getting priced out as the average ticket climbed from $5.81 in 2002 to $11.31 in 2024, more than doubling the cost. A family of four now faces $45 just to get in and not including the concession stand - AMC's real profit center, where popcorn and drinks yield 85% margins but add $50 to $60 more to the cost of a night out."
Netflix offered $72 billion, valuing Warner at $27.75 per share in cash and stock, to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery's film production, HBO, and Max platform, while spinning off cable networks like CNN into Discovery Global by mid-2026. A competing Paramount Skydance $30-per-share bid and a hostile $108 billion all-cash takeover emerged, with accusations that the studio board favored Netflix and ignored superior offers. Regulators and antitrust critics warn of reduced streaming competition. Theaters face a long decline: ticket sales fell from 1.57 billion in 2002 to 761 million in 2024, while average ticket prices more than doubled, squeezing family attendance and boosting concession dependence.
Read at 24/7 Wall St.
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