Netflix’s co-CEO acknowledged the potential of Warner Bros.’s gaming business, despite the company initially downplaying its importance.
Netflix co-CEO Gregory K. Peters said Warner Bros.’s video games were treated as a “relatively minor” element during the deal preparations. He noted that the gaming division was not included in the asset valuation model at all, although its promise became apparent later.
“Although Warner Bros. has made notable strides in the games industry, we initially assigned no value to that segment because it seemed peripheral compared with their core operations. Still, a number of their titles—Hogwarts Legacy among them—have delivered strong results, and we now perceive additional opportunities. To be clear, games were not part of our original deal model.”
Previously, Netflix attempted to grow its own gaming division but closed several studios and projects, including Boss Fight Entertainment, the studio behind the mobile game Squid Game: Unleashed, as well as an in-house team that had been developing a multiplayer AAA shooter. Against this backdrop, some analysts have expressed concern about how a potential deal might impact the future of Warner Bros.’s gaming arm.
The proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Studios, valued at roughly $82 billion, has not yet been approved. Its completion is being complicated by regulatory reviews and a competing offer from Paramount, which raised its total valuation of Warner Bros. to more than $100 billion by proposing a $30-per-share buyout for shareholders.
Source: iXBT.games