Trump Calls Ted Sarandos a ‘Fantastic Man’ but Says Netflix-Warner Bros. Deal Would Give Streamer ‘Very Big Market Share’: ‘It Could Be a Problem’
President Donald Trump on Sunday confirmed he recently met with Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos at the White House to discuss the Warner Bros. Discovery deal — and said the market share of a combined Netflix with WB and HBO Max “could be a problem.”
Trump, speaking with reporters on the red carpet of the Kennedy Center Honors event in Washington, D.C., said Netflix’s deal to acquire Warner Bros. studios and streaming business will require a review, and said, “I’ll be involved in that decision.”
Trump said that the government review of Netflix’s proposed $83 billion deal for Warner Bros., which was announced Friday, must “go through a process, and we’ll see what happens.”
According to Trump, Sarandos visited the Oval Office last week. The Netflix exec is “a fantastic man,” the president said. “I have a lot of respect for him, but it’s a lot of market share.”
Trump also said of Sarandos, “He’s a great person… He’s got a lot of interesting things happening aside from what you’re talking about, but it is a big market share. There’s no question about it. It could be a problem.”
