Jared Kushner’s private equity firm, Affinity Partners, announced it will no longer participate in the consortium backing Paramount Skydance’s unsolicited $108 billion bid for Warner Bros. Discovery. The withdrawal, disclosed in a statement to NBC News, came amid a rapidly shifting fight over the media giant after Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison launched the offer on Dec. 8. The change follows competing moves by Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery to strike a separate transaction covering the company’s most valuable assets. Affinity said competitive dynamics had materially changed since its October commitment and that it still sees strategic logic in Paramount’s offer.
Key Takeaways
- Affinity Partners — the private equity firm led by Jared Kushner’s associates — announced it has exited the financing group for Paramount Skydance’s bid for Warner Bros. Discovery.
- Paramount Skydance’s unsolicited takeover proposal, announced by CEO David Ellison on Dec. 8, values the full company at more than $108 billion.
- The Paramount bid originally included funding commitments from Affinity, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, the Qatar Investment Authority and a large Abu Dhabi-based fund.
- Days before Affinity’s withdrawal, Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery disclosed a separate deal to transfer WBD’s most valuable assets — including HBO Max, HBO and Warner Bros. studios — to Netflix.
- Reports indicated Warner Bros. Discovery was preparing to reject Paramount’s full-company offer imminently; those reports became public shortly before Affinity’s announcement.
- Any full-scope transaction would likely face review by the U.S. Justice Department antitrust division and the Federal Trade Commission.
Background
The takeover tussle began to crystallize in early December when David Ellison said on Dec. 8 that Paramount Skydance was making an unsolicited bid to buy all of Warner Bros. Discovery for more than $108 billion. The offer was notable for its scale and for being backed by significant international and private capital commitments. Affinity Partners had been reported in October as one of the financers prepared to support Paramount Skydance, alongside sovereign funds from Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Abu Dhabi.
Industry observers say the bid upended a parallel negotiation in which Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery had reached a deal for Netflix to acquire key assets such as HBO Max, the HBO network and Warner Bros. film operations. That narrower transaction was framed as a way to separate WBD’s streaming and entertainment crown jewels without transferring the entire corporate structure. The divergent strategies — an all-in takeover versus an assets-only sale — set the stage for competing legal, regulatory and strategic arguments among bidders and regulators.
Main Event
Affinity’s statement to NBC News said the firm no longer intends to pursue the opportunity because “two strong competitors” are vying to secure the future of Warner Bros. Discovery and the dynamics of the investment had changed since October. The firm reiterated belief in Paramount’s strategic rationale but emphasized its decision to step back from funding the hostile offer. The announcement removes one named financier from the high-profile consortium that had been presented as a counterweight to Netflix’s asset-focused proposal.
Paramount Skydance’s full-company proposal has been driven publicly by David Ellison and supported privately by his father, Larry Ellison, Oracle’s chairman and majority shareholder. The involvement of deep-pocketed backers made the $108 billion figure plausible on paper, but the practical execution of a full takeover raised questions about regulatory approval, financing structure and operational integration across disparate WBD divisions.
The competing Netflix-WBD arrangement was described by WBD and Netflix as a carve-out sale for the streaming and premium content units. That deal, while narrower in scope, would transfer the parts most central to streaming competition. Industry sources said Warner Bros. Discovery executives were weighing their options and that board-level responses to the different proposals were unfolding rapidly, including reports that WBD might formally reject Paramount’s unsolicited bid.
Analysis & Implications
Affinity’s withdrawal reduces one element of Paramount Skydance’s financial mosaic and could affect perceptions of the viability of a full-company bid. Even if other backers remain committed, the exit of a named U.S.-affiliated private equity partner may complicate financing narratives and public relations for the hostile offer. In hostile or unsolicited scenarios, visible financing commitments are often as important to momentum as the headline price.
Regulatory risk is a central hurdle for any transaction involving Warner Bros. Discovery. A sale of the entire company would likely trigger in-depth review by the Department of Justice antitrust division and the Federal Trade Commission, given the concentration implications for content ownership and distribution. The narrower Netflix deal, though also subject to scrutiny, frames a different set of antitrust issues tied to market power in streaming and content aggregation.
Strategically, the two competing approaches reflect different valuations of WBD’s parts versus its corporate whole. Paramount Skydance’s all-in bid assumes integrated value and potential synergies across assets, whereas the Netflix arrangement assigns highest value to streaming and premium content brands. How investors and WBD’s board weigh these competing valuation frameworks will shape whether a transaction proceeds and in what form.
Comparison & Data
| Bidder(s) | Scope | Headline Value | Named Backers | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paramount Skydance | Entire Warner Bros. Discovery | More than $108 billion | Affinity Partners (withdrew), PIF, Qatar IA, Abu Dhabi fund | Hostile bid; financing reshuffled |
| Netflix | Selected WBD assets (HBO Max, HBO, Warner Bros. studios) | Undisclosed in public reporting | N/A | Announced separate deal with WBD |
The table summarizes public details: Paramount Skydance’s headline $108 billion figure is the most explicit valuation disclosed. Netflix’s agreement was described in terms of asset scope rather than a single headline price. Affinity’s public exit narrows one financing line for Paramount’s broader bid.
Reactions & Quotes
“With two strong competitors vying to secure the future of this unique American asset, Affinity has decided no longer to pursue the opportunity,”
Affinity spokesperson (statement to NBC News)
Affinity framed its withdrawal as a change driven by competitive dynamics and reiterated belief in Paramount’s rationale, while stopping short of criticizing other bidders.
“We are launching a more than $108 billion unsolicited takeover offer for all of Warner Bros. Discovery’s assets,”
David Ellison, Paramount Skydance CEO (public announcement, Dec. 8)
Ellison positioned the proposal as an aggressive, full-company alternative to the narrower Netflix transaction; his backing by family capital has been central to the bid’s feasibility claims.
“If they are friends, I’d hate to see my enemies!”
Donald Trump (Truth Social post)
Former President Trump weighed in on social media, expressing displeasure with Ellison and connecting the corporate dispute to broader media narratives he follows closely.
Unconfirmed
- Reports that Warner Bros. Discovery was preparing to formally reject Paramount’s bid as soon as Wednesday remain unconfirmed by the WBD board in public filings.
- The precise financial terms and binding nature of commitments from the Saudi, Qatari and Abu Dhabi investors have not been publicly disclosed in full detail.
- Affinity did not provide a detailed explanation of whether its exit was driven by valuation, regulatory concerns, or other contractual issues; internal deliberations remain private.
Bottom Line
Affinity Partners’ exit removes a named U.S.-linked financier from the Paramount Skydance bid, narrowing visible support for an already risky hostile offer. The move does not by itself end Paramount’s effort, but it changes the optics and may affect leverage in negotiations and investor confidence.
The core contest remains whether a full-company acquisition or a targeted sale of streaming and premium content better captures WBD’s value. Regulators will be a critical arbiter: any deal that materially concentrates content ownership or distribution power will face intensive scrutiny by the Justice Department and FTC. For market participants and observers, the next days of board decisions, any formal WBD response and further financing disclosures will be decisive.
Sources
- NBC News (News report) — original coverage and firm statement to NBC News.