Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos next month will go before a Senate committee to defend the streamer’s $83 billion deal to buy Warner Bros.’s studios and streaming business — and field questions about its antitrust implications.
In addition to the Netflix exec, Warner Bros. Discovery chief strategy officer Bruce Campbell will testify before the committee, Variety has confirmed. The appearances by Sarandos and Campbell at the Senate hearing in February was reported by Bloomberg News; the exact date has not yet been set.
Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), who is chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights, has previously expressed skepticism about Netflix’s deal to buy Warner Bros.
The senator previously indicated plans to hold a hearing on the Netflix-WB deal, claiming there were “A lot of antitrust red flags here.” Writing on X shortly after Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery announced their agreement on Dec. 5, Lee said, “Buckle up for an intense antitrust hearing in the Senate.”
Democrats have spoken out against the Netflix-WB pact as well. Last month Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) called it “an anti-monopoly nightmare.”
The merger of Netflix-Warner Bros. “would create one massive media giant with control of close to half of the streaming market — threatening to force Americans into higher subscription prices and fewer choices over what and how they watch, while putting American workers at risk,” Warren said at the time.
Netflix said it ended 2025 with more than 325 million streaming subscribers worldwide. WBD had 128.0 million streaming subscribers as of September 2025, including customers of HBO Max as well as Discovery+ and its sports-streaming services.
Love Film & TV?
Get your daily dose of everything happening in music, film and TV in Australia and abroad.
David Ellison’s Paramount Skydance — which is continuing to wage a hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros. Discovery in its entirety and is urging WBD shareholders to vote against the Netflix pact — has repeatedly claimed that Netflix’s deal for WB faces an uphill battle.
“The Netflix transaction faces severe regulatory risk because it would further entrench market concentration, in contrast to a combination with Paramount that enhances competition and strengthens the long-term prospects of the entertainment industry,” Paramount Skydance said in a statement Thursday. According to the company, Netflix and HBO Max combined would have an estimated 43% share of global streaming subscribers, which Paramount alleged would lead to “higher prices for consumers, reduced compensation for content creators and talent, and significant harm to American and international theatrical exhibitors.”
Meanwhile, Hollywood groups including the WGA have come out against the Netflix-Warner Bros. deal, alleging the merger would eliminate jobs and increase consumer prices. Theater-owner trade group Cinema United told Congress that the tie-up would result in theater closures and job losses.
Netflix and WBD have both expressed confidence their agreement will pass regulatory muster.
On Jan. 20, Netflix enhanced its 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. That was aimed at neutralising Paramount’s argument that its deal proposal was superior to Netflix’s, because Paramount’s $30/share offer was all-cash.
From Variety US