President Trump weighed in for the first time on the proposed $83 billion deal between Netflix and Warner Bros., saying late on Sunday that the merger “could be a problem.” The deal requires approval by antitrust regulators and is expected to be closely scrutinized given the heft of the two entertainment giants.
Netflix is the world’s largest paid streaming service, with more than 300 million subscribers. Bulking up with the television and film studios of Warner Bros., as well as HBO Max, would create a streaming colossus.
“It is a big market share, there’s no question about it,” Mr. Trump said in response to questions from reporters as he arrived at the Kennedy Center Honors in Washington.
How antitrust enforcers view the deal will depend in part on how the Trump administration defines the rapidly evolving media industry. Assessing the effects of the deal is “going be for some economists to tell,” Mr. Trump said, “and also and I’ll be involved in that decision, too.”
The President has no direct role on antitrust matters, which are traditionally left to the Federal Trade Commission or the Justice Department. But Mr. Trump’s wishes have loomed over several deals during his terms in office, and deal makers increasingly make their pitch directly to the administration as part of efforts to argue their case.
Mr. Trump feels particularly strongly about deals involving media companies. Skydance faced a long delay in its effort to buy Paramount, as the media company grappled with a lawsuit brought by Mr. Trump against the CBS News program “60 Minutes.” Mr. Trump made opposition to the merger of AT&T and Time Warner a campaign issue during his first presidential run, although he failed to block it once in the White House.
Netflix is expected to argue that the market for consuming content is far bigger than just the streaming industry and also includes players like YouTube and TikTok. That would be a similar argument to the one successfully used by Meta in a recent case defending itself against accusations that it had illegally created a monopoly in social media through acquiring nascent rivals Instagram and WhatsApp.
Netflix is also expected to claim that combining the companies’ streaming platforms is a better deal for the many consumers who currently pay for both.
The deal has sparked a fierce backlash in Hollywood. “This merger must be blocked,” the Writers Guild of America, which represents more than 12,000 screenwriters, said in a statement. “The world’s largest streaming company swallowing one of its biggest competitors is what antitrust laws were designed to prevent.”
If the deal fails to get approved, Netflix will be required to pay Warner Bros. Discovery a $5.8 billion breakup fee, according to documents filed with federal regulators.
Mr. Trump said that last week he had met with Ted Sarandos, Netflix’s co-chief executive, at the Oval Office. Mr. Trump said that the executive did not give any guarantees about the deal. He added that he thought Mr. Sarandos was “fantastic” and had done “a legendary job” running the streaming giant.
Lauren Hirsch is a Times reporter who covers deals and dealmakers in Wall Street and Washington.
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