Netflix faces a class-action lawsuit seeking to block its $72 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery’s studio and streaming businesses, with a Las Vegas subscriber alleging the deal threatens competition in the streaming market.
The lawsuit, filed on December 8 by HBO Max subscriber Michelle Fendelander, comes just days after Netflix announced the blockbuster acquisition on December 5.
The legal challenge highlights growing concerns about consolidation in the streaming industry as major players combine forces. With HBO Max being one of Netflix’s closest rivals, the merger would reshape the competitive landscape.
The complaint explicitly notes that Netflix would gain control over Warner Bros. franchises, including Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, and DC Comics. This would effectively remove HBO Max as a standalone competitor in the subscription video market.
Netflix dismissed the legal challenge in a statement reported by Bloomberg: “We believe this suit is meritless and is merely an attempt by the plaintiffs’ bar to leverage all the attention on the deal.”
The streaming giant maintains that the merger will benefit viewers by combining content libraries. Popular Warner Bros properties like “The Big Bang Theory,” “The Sopranos,” and “The Wizard of Oz” would join Netflix originals such as “Wednesday” and “Bridgerton.”
Questions remain about HBO Max’s future under Netflix ownership. While co-CEO Ted Sarandos said HBO and HBO Max would continue as standalone services, co-CEO Greg Peters suggested the company has “a lot of options to figure out how you package things in different ways,” Fox 4 KDFW reported.
The acquisition comes as Warner Bros Discovery prepares to split its operations. The streaming and studio assets headed to Netflix will separate from cable networks like CNN and TNT Sports, which will form a new publicly-traded company called Discovery Global.
This reorganization, expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2026, reflects the industry’s shift from traditional cable to streaming dominance. The Netflix-Warner Bros deal, if approved, would accelerate that transformation while raising antitrust questions about market concentration.
