Netflix to acquire Warner Bros for $82 billion, includes WB Games studios and IP

Warner Bros. accepts Netflix's $82 billion bid to buy its Studios & Streaming business, which includes WB Games studios teams, games content, and IPs.

Netflix to acquire Warner Bros for $82 billion, includes WB Games studios and IP
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Senior Gaming Editor
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TL;DR: Netflix plans to acquire Warner Bros. Studios & Streaming for $82.7 billion, including HBO, film and TV catalogs, and WB Games. The deal maintains Warner Bros.' current operations, integrating key IP like Harry Potter, DC Universe, and popular games, while the future of some studios remains uncertain.

Netflix plans to acquire Warner Bros. in an $82 billion buyout, and that includes HBO, TV & film, and the interactive WB Games segment.

Netflix to acquire Warner Bros for $82 billion, includes WB Games studios and IP 22
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Netflix and Warner Bros. today announced a megaton multimedia combination: Netflix plans to buy Warner Bros.' newly-formed Studios & Streaming business for $82.7 billion. The deal would see Netflix becoming the new owner of WB's core business, including film and TV catalogs with HBO shows like The Sopranos and Game of Thrones as well as film rights to Harry Potter and the DC Universe. WB's Burbank-based studio is included, and so is the HBO Max service.

The WB Games division hasn't been discussed much in the press materials for the deal, however we've received confirmation that Warner Bros.' games studios, IP, and content will indeed be part of the transaction. This means that Netflix would effectively acquire WB Games, however Netflix has telegraphed that it plans to keep WB's multi-division hierarchy intact, with gaming continuing to operate as its own sub-segment.

It's unclear how this transaction will affect key WB Games studios, including the Chicago-based NetherRealm that produces the best-selling Mortal Kombat franchise, or WB Games Montreal up in Canada. In its press release, Netflix says it intends to "maintain Warner Bros.' current operations."

WB Games has seen its fair share of ups and downs in recent years, with high-profile games like Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League significantly under-performing and leading to heavy losses. Hogwarts Legacy delivered polar opposite results and became the best-selling game of 2023, generating over $1 billion in sales a few months after release.

Warner Bros. executives had promised to deliver a sequel to Hogwarts Legacy, and even went so far as to say that making Hogwarts 2 was the "biggest priority" for the group.

WB's David Zaslav even discussed a potential new Superman interactive game.

However, both of these quotes were given prior to WB's decision to shut down Monolith Productions, the group that made the popular Middle-earth Lord of the Rings RPGs. Monolith's big-budget Wonder Woman game was also cancelled.

The overall health of the WB Games division remains fuzzy, especially after Monolith's closure.