Bloomberg Intelligence Podcast:

"Netflix, Comcast and Paramount Make Bids for Warner Bros"

Date: November 21, 2025
Hosts: Scarlet Fu, Paul Sweeney
Featured Guests: Geetha Ranganathan (Bloomberg Intelligence, Media Analyst), Beth Cowett (Bloomberg Opinion Columnist), Jodi Laurie (Credit Analyst), Calvin Butler (CEO, Exelon)

Episode Overview

This episode covers several timely topics in business and finance, focusing chiefly on the high-stakes bidding war for Warner Bros. Discovery, evolving corporate strategies in workforce management with a look at Walmart's transformation, consumer travel trends amid inflation, and the crucial role of utilities in powering the AI revolution. The hosts and expert guests bring Bloomberg Intelligence's analysis to bear on each, providing company-level insights and implications for the broader market.

1. Warner Bros. Discovery: Bidding War Breakdown

Segment Start: [02:04]

Key Discussions:

• Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) has received first-round, non-binding bids from Paramount-Skydance (for the whole company), and Netflix and Comcast (for studio and streaming assets only).
• The bids’ enterprise value is estimated at over $90 billion.
• Paramount-Skydance’s offer per share is in the $25–$27 range, while WBD CEO David Zaslav is reportedly seeking over $30/share.

Notable Insights:

• The process will be drawn-out, with additional bid rounds expected.
• A "Plan B" exists for WBD: splitting into TV networks and streaming/studio businesses, which may prove beneficial regardless of M&A outcomes.
• Major value is seen in WBD's studio and streaming, with combined valuations of $25–$28/share for those alone.
• Potential merger synergies (with, for example, Paramount) could reach $4-5 billion, boosting attractiveness.

Notable Quotes:

• Geetha Ranganathan:

  “Next steps, Paul, is that these were just first round bids. They are non-binding bids… This is going to be a very long drawn process. So we're going to have multiple rounds.” [02:48]

• Geetha Ranganathan:

  “David Zaslav has publicly said that he wants something north of $30 per share. So this is going to play out for quite a while, I think.” [03:29]

• Geetha Ranganathan:

  “If nothing materializes from all of these bids… they are still on track to separate their businesses. And who knows, maybe that would be the better path for them going forward.” [04:34]

• Geetha Ranganathan:

  “If you look at combining...Warner Bros. Discovery with all of Paramount... we’re looking at about $4 to $5 billion in synergies, which then adds to the deal value.” [05:28]

2. Walmart: Workforce Investment as Strategic Shift

Segment Start: [07:30]

Key Discussions:

• Walmart’s decade-long effort, guided by outgoing CEO Doug McMillon, to invest $2.7 billion in its workforce—raising wages, increasing training, and establishing career paths.
• Initial investor skepticism: stock suffered on announcement, but results have vindicated the strategy (market cap has tripled; 400%+ shareholder returns in a decade).
• Walmart’s approach to AI: focus on reskilling and growing the workforce, rather than mass layoffs characteristic of other large employers.
• Employee retention is up 10% since 2015, and 75% of management roles are filled internally.

Notable Quotes:

• Beth Cowett:

  “It was pay increases, but more than anything else, it was creating not low paying jobs, but a career… that shifted the whole culture of the company.” [09:37]

• Beth Cowett:

  “Walmart’s taken a very different approach… It has not used AI to have some of these mass layoffs… It said AI will change every job. It knows that. But it is trying to get every worker through to the other side.” [10:17]

• Beth Cowett:

  “When they announced it...the company lost tremendous value...And now...the market cap has tripled. The stock has returned more than 400%. So they really took a gamble on this and stuck with it.” [11:20]

3. Consumer Spending & Travel Trends

Segment Start: [15:27]

Key Discussions:

• Survey results: Most consumers are keeping vacation/travel budgets steady but are more reluctant to exceed those budgets, given heightened inflation risk.
• Even as out-of-home spending (e.g., eating out) is expected to rise, it reflects not just higher demand, but increased costs.
• Fewer people plan to splurge if costs exceed budgets; more are looking into free or low-cost options (e.g. museums, domestic travel).
• Americans traveling to Canada has increased, possibly linked to the upcoming World Cup, while Canadian travel to the U.S. is down.
• "All inclusive" vacation models and 'add-ons' (e.g., paid excursions on cruises) are enabling both luxury and budget consumers to travel, but many amenities once free are now being monetized.

Notable Quotes:

• Jodi Laurie:

  “If costs exceed budgets, fewer people than last year said they’d increase their budget… more people this year are planning on cutting and looking at free options.” [16:11]

• Jodi Laurie:

  “International trend is to Canada. Canada bumped up to the second spot… We are seeing a lot of Americans go to Canada and I am curious how much… is a reflection of the World Cup next year.” [17:14]

• Jodi Laurie:

  “Even though you have the cruise lines...that they all are considered these package deal, what every company is doing...is they’re all doing these premium products… The add on...so you can get the base level, which is really the skeleton package.” [19:30]

4. Utilities, AI, and Powering the Future

Segment Start: [23:03]

Key Discussions:

• AI and data centers are fueling a surge in power demand; utilities are central to enabling this shift.
• Exelon (utility company) is preparing by fast-tracking data center projects while prioritizing affordability for residential customers (~11 million served).
• Innovative tariff/transmission agreements protect consumers: developers must put up deposits linked to long-term projections, shielding residential users from cost overruns or project failures.
• Supply costs (generation) are rising, not always the utility's fault; keeping the generation stack robust is vital to holding bills down.
• Nuclear power's resurgence: recent U.S. government plans to fund 10 large nuclear reactors, leveraging international finance (notably from Japan).

Notable Quotes:

• Calvin Butler (Exelon):

  “The energy sector is 5% of the GDP, but we power the next 95, and we take that very seriously.” [23:52]

• Calvin Butler:

  “We've come up with what we consider a rather innovative solution…requiring a letter of credit or a cash deposit from these large developers…to protect the other customers on the system for the investments that we're making.” [26:23]

• Calvin Butler:

  “That nuclear baseload generation is going to be critical to us meeting this effort. Every electron matters to help on affordability and that’s why it’s so critical.” [28:50]

Memorable Moments & Tone

• Light banter between hosts, e.g., joking about a limited TV series being made about the Warner Bros. deal. [02:28]
• Personal stories about travel—such as Paul lamenting not discovering "all inclusives" sooner as a parent. [18:19]
• Honest assessments of management strategies and market reactions, with a focus on the long-term wisdom of sometimes-controversial corporate decisions.

Timestamps for Major Segments

• Warner Bros. Discovery M&A news: [02:04] – [05:53]
• Walmart workforce strategy & reputation rehabilitation: [07:30] – [13:04]
• Consumer and travel data & analysis: [15:27] – [20:40]
• AI, utilities, and powering data centers (Exelon Interview): [23:03] – [29:31]

For listeners wanting deep dives into media M&A, corporate workforce strategy, consumer travel behavior, and the intersection of utilities with AI infrastructure, this episode is packed with nuanced analysis and firsthand industry expertise.