(Editor’s note: This story has been updated with the latest developments in the takeover battle.)

The takeover battle for Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) took a decisive turn on Thursday, after Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) declined to raise its $82.7 billion offer and stepped aside, positioning Paramount Skydance (NASDAQ:PSKY) as the likely winner.

Here’s a timeline of how the bidding war unfolded—

• Feb 26: Netflix said it will not raise its offer for Warner Bros. Discovery and is effectively walking away from the deal after the company's board determined that Paramount Skydance's revised bid constituted a "Company Superior Proposal."

• Feb. 24: WBD says it received a new offer from Paramount, which includes a higher purchase price of $31 per share in cash, a $7 billion regulatory termination fee, and a $2.8 billion termination fee that Warner Bros would have to pay Netflix to terminate its existing merger agreement. The company's board determined that the revised proposal could reasonably be expected to lead to a "company superior proposal" to the Netflix offer, signaling a potential shift away from the Netflix deal.

• Feb. 17: Warner Bros. rejects Paramount’s latest bid; gives the company until Feb. 23 to submit its “best and final offer.”

• Feb. 10: Paramount revises its offer to include a “ticking fee” to incentivize WBD, payable to its shareholders for any potential delays in receiving regulatory approval for the deal, and a $2.8 billion termination fee payout to Netflix.

• Jan. 20: Netflix switches to an all-cash offer for Warner Bros., without increasing the $82.7 billion price

• Jan. 12: David Ellison and Paramount move to sue WBD, say they intend to launch a proxy fight; WBD deems the lawsuit “meritless.”

• Jan. 8: Paramount reaffirms its $30 per share cash offer, saying Netflix’s bid
  “unmistakably inferior”

• Jan. 7, 2026: WBD rejects Paramount’s offer again, saying the bid is "inferior" to Netflix’s offer

• Dec. 22, 2025: David Ellison’s father and Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, worth more than $240 billion, backs Paramount's bid with a $40.4 billion personal guarantee. The amended offer follows Warner's sharp criticism of Paramount's $30-per-share proposal, which cited financing opacity and execution risk. Paramount urged shareholders to tender by Jan. 21 and raised its reverse termination fee to $5.8 billion

• Dec. 17: Warner Bros. formally rejects Paramount’s hostile bid, accusing the Ellison family of failing to put money into the deal, and concludes the Netflix offer is far superior

• Dec. 16: President Donald Trump‘s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, whose private equity firm had promised $200 million, withdraws from Paramount's bidding team.

• Dec. 15: Netflix seeks to soothe its staff’s concerns and defends Warner Bros deal as a “win”.

• Dec. 10: Trump weighs in, slamming CNN as a “disgrace,” and demands the news network be sold in the deal. That same day, Paramount CEO David Ellison sent a letter to Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders offering $30 per share in cash, arguing Paramount and partner RedBird Capital were best positioned to create long-term value.

• Dec. 8: Paramount launches the $108 billion hostile bid, with Ellison saying Warner Bros never responded to Paramount’s offer.

• Dec. 5: Netflix announces a deal to buy Warner Bros.

• Dec. 1: Three bidders, Netflix, Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA), and Paramount, submit detailed offers, including details about their financing. Comcast proposes combining its NBCUniversal media company with Warner Bros. and HBO; Netflix improves its offer for the studios and HBO. Paramount increases its offer to $26.50 a share. The David Ellison-led company had submitted several offers before this.

• Nov. 20: The three bidders submit first-round offers for Warner Bros. Discovery.

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