David Ellison Isn’t Giving Up Warner Bros. Quest: Paramount Skydance Extends Deadline for Hostile Takeover Offer

David Ellison is still angling to win support from Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders for Paramount Skydance‘s rival acquisition bid for the entire company, continuing his unlikely quest to derail Netflix’s deal for WB. But the Ellisons — for now — are not signaling that they’re willing to pony up more cash in the fight.

On Thursday, Paramount Skydance said it was extending the deadline for its $30/share all-cash offer for WBD until Feb. 20. Paramount’s previous tender offer expired Jan. 21.

Paramount Skydance said in announcing the deadline extension that it was “reaffirming its commitment to a transaction with WBD at a $108.4 billion enterprise value that is significantly greater and far more certain than the purported $82.7 billion enterprise value of the Netflix transaction.”

Netflix on Tuesday (Jan. 20) officially sweetened its $83 billion deal to buy Warner Bros. Discovery’s TV and film studios and the HBO Max streaming business by switching to an all-cash offer, replacing its previous cash-and-stock agreement. The board of WBD has unanimously approved the Netflix pact — and has rejected Paramount’s buyout overtures eight times.

Netflix’s shift to an all-cash deal was aimed at puncturing one of Paramount’s key talking points: That the Paramount proposal was a better offer for WBD shareholders because its $30/share offer was all cash.