Group 1 - The Warner Brothers Discovery board has received six separate offers, including one from Paramount Sky and others from Netflix and various companies, indicating a competitive bidding process [1] - The analysis suggests that the Paramount Sky offer is not higher on a risk-adjusted basis due to its weak financial position, with a market cap of $15 billion and no real free cash flow, making the acquisition of $108 billion risky [1] - Concerns were raised about the financing of the Paramount Sky deal, specifically the need for approximately $40 billion in equity, and the lack of assurance regarding the Ellison revocable trust, which could be altered post-merger [1] Group 2 - The discussion highlights the importance of legally binding commitments in financing deals, referencing Elon Musk's contractual guarantee of equity in a previous transaction as a standard that has not been met in the current negotiations [2]
Warner Bros. bid process as clean and thorough as anyone can want, says Evercore's Roger Altman