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Netflix plans an $82.7B acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, including HBO Max.
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The deal adds major franchises and WB Games to Netflix’s ecosystem.
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If approved, it could reshape the future of streaming and gaming.
Streaming platforms for movies and series are increasingly popular, and although Netflix has reigned supreme from the beginning, its rivals are making things increasingly difficult. Now is Netflix’s opportunity to eliminate one of its biggest competitors by acquiring it, as it buys Warner Bros. Discovery, which includes HBO Max, for a sum of $82.7 billion ($72 billion in market capitalization), surpassing Microsoft’s $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
Netflix began renting movies in the early 2000s, a common practice at the time, but these could be rented online. Later, in 2007, Netflix launched its new video-on-demand service, enabling the use of something then unheard of: streaming. The transmission of audiovisual content, including movies and series, over the internet began there, and Netflix became the leading company in the sector, boasting over 10 million subscribers by 2009.
Netflix now boasts hundreds of thousands of subscribers worldwide, reaching 301.6 million subscribers in August 2025, according to its latest figures. With these numbers, Amazon Prime, Disney+, and HBO Max are unable to compete, although they continue to siphon off customers.
Netflix’s price increases and policy changes have led some customers to cancel their subscriptions and switch to other platforms. Even so, Netflix’s dominance is undeniable, and the current acquisition will further solidify its position if completed.
We’re talking about Netflix’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, which would include HBO Max, one of its main competitors in the streaming platform market. The deal also includes not only the DC Universe, The Matrix, Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, and Friends franchises, but also the HBO library, HBO Max, and the entire Warner Bros. Games division. Netflix will thus control if we just look at gaming:
- WB Games Montréal (Gotham Knights)
- WB Games Boston (The Lord of the Rings Online)
- TT Games (LEGO games)
- NetherRealm (Mortal Kombat, Injustice)
- Avalanche Software (Hogwarts Legacy)
- Rocksteady (Batman: Arkham, Suicide Squad)
From a gaming perspective, this acquisition could spark major shifts across Warner Bros. titles. With Netflix already experimenting in the gaming space — both through mobile games and cloud gaming trials — integrating studios like Rocksteady, NetherRealm, and Avalanche Software opens the door for cross-media projects, day-one streaming tie-ins, and possibly even Netflix-exclusive game releases.
Fans could see stronger synergy between games and series, such as expanded universes for Mortal Kombat or new story-driven content tied to HBO and DC franchises.
On the other side, if you recall this acquisition, Microsoft spent a year and a half battling regulators to finally secure the deal. Something similar could happen with Netflix, because if we add HBO Max to its platform, we would have significantly more content and subscribers than our rivals. The $75 billion estimate would assume an offer to buy Warner Bros. Discovery shares for $30 each.
If we add to this the fact that Netflix has current hit series like Stranger Things, which recently premiered its new season, we can see how this acquisition will be very beneficial for maintaining its dominance.
Netflix has acknowledged that the purchase will allow it to offer more options and greater value to its customers, thus offering the content of HBO and HBO Max. Furthermore, it estimates cost savings of $2-3 billion annually by the third year and expects earnings per share to increase starting in the second year.
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[Editor-in-Chief]
Sajjad Hussain is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Tech4Gamers.com. Apart from the Tech and Gaming scene, Sajjad is a Seasonal banker who has delivered multi-million dollar projects as an IT Project Manager and works as a freelancer to provide professional services to corporate giants and emerging startups in the IT space.
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