The Streaming Hunger Games: After Netflix–WBD, Who’s Next To Die?

We’re not in a “Streaming War” anymore.
We’re in the Streaming Hunger Games — and Netflix just became the Capitol.
In case you missed it:
Netflix has agreed to buy Warner Bros Discovery’s TV & film studios and streaming division in a deal worth about $72 billion, including debt. That gives Netflix control of HBO, DC, Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, Dune, Mad Max, and a century of Warner Bros history, on top of Stranger Things, Wednesday, Squid Game, and the rest of its catalog.
To pay for it, Netflix is lining up one of the largest bridge loans in corporate history — roughly $59 billion, led by Wells Fargo and other banks — before swapping that into long-term bonds and loan facilities.
Unions, theater owners, and regulators?
They’re not exactly thrilled:
• Hollywood unions and Cinema United warn the deal could mean job cuts, higher prices, less content diversity, and a potential 25% hit to the domestic box office if more Warner films skip theaters for streaming.
• European cinema body UNIC calls it a “failure for cinema” and plans to fight it in the EU.
• U.S. lawmakers from both parties are already raising antitrust concerns about Netflix controlling HBO, Warner Bros, and such a massive slice of premium content.
Meanwhile, Paramount Skydance has just completed its own ~$8 billion merger, with the new entity trading on Nasdaq under PSKY, trying to reinvent itself as a “next-generation media company” but still losing the bidding war for WBD to Netflix.

In this video, we break down:
• What Netflix actually bought with Warner Bros + HBO + DC + Wizarding World
• Why unions and theater owners say this mega-deal threatens jobs, cinemas, and consumer choice
• How Netflix’s lukewarm history with theatrical releases could change the future of Batman, Dune, Harry Potter & more
• The winners & losers in the Streaming Hunger Games:
• Netflix as the new Capitol
• Disney as the last other empire
• Universal/Peacock’s strong theatrical slate but weak streamer
• Paramount Skydance as the “wounded tribute with a sword”
• Amazon as the quiet tank
• Apple TV+ as the prestige sniper

Is this good for viewers… or are we just getting fewer choices from bigger corporations with bigger debt?

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💬 QUESTION FOR YOU:
Who do you think is the next streamer to die or get swallowed — Peacock, Paramount Skydance, someone else… or none of the above if regulators finally grow a spine?

Sources:
• Reuters – coverage of the $72B Netflix–Warner Bros Discovery deal, financing, and political pushback
• AP News – overview of what changes for streamers under the proposed Netflix–WBD merger
• Financial Times – reporting on Netflix’s $59B bridge loan and debt structure for the acquisition
• The Hollywood Reporter – reactions from European cinema body UNIC and Hollywood unions to the deal
• Deadline – industry and union responses, plus analysis of theatrical and antitrust implications
• Business Insider – David Zaslav’s internal memos and town hall comments about HBO Max and the Netflix deal
• Cinema United / UNIC statements – warnings about box office impact, cinema closures, and reduced competition
• Paramount / Skydance investor materials – details on the Skydance–Paramount merger into Paramount Skydance Corporation (PSKY)

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