WarnerMedia-Discovery Merger Sets Up Rivals for Big Decisions

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AT&T Inc.’s WarnerMedia and Discovery decided they needed each other to compete in the streaming-driven entertainment world. Now, rivals must decide whether they should do the same.

Comcast’s NBCUniversal—owner of the NBC network, Universal studio and a collection of cable channels—viewed WarnerMedia as a possible target, should its assets come on the market, people familiar with the matter said. NBCUniversal saw potential to pitch WarnerMedia’s HBO Max streaming service as a subscription offering and its own Peacock streaming service as a mostly ad-supported one, one of the people said.

ViacomCBS, owner of the CBS network and Paramount studio, is seen as a potential alternative, this person said. Traditionally, media executives have worried that any such deal bringing two broadcast networks—in this case NBC and CBS—under one roof might run into problems with antitrust enforcers, the people said. But there could be an appetite to test that idea in a modern entertainment industry where streaming giants likeRobust original programming and deep libraries of TV shows and movies have been key to hooking customers on streaming services.

Discovery Chief Executive David Zaslav —who will lead the new, publicly traded company that emerges from the deal with WarnerMedia—touted the two businesses’ content offerings Monday, voicing confidence that their combined library could face off against competitors. He noted that the two entities together will spend $20 billion on content this year, topping Netflix’s previously projected

 

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