According to 9to5Mac, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos has stated that the Warner Bros. Television Group will continue licensing its shows to rival streaming platforms, including Apple TV+, if Netflix’s proposed $83 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery goes through. This directly addresses a major concern for Apple, as Warner’s TV studio produces several of Apple TV+’s biggest hits, including Ted Lasso, Shrinking, Bad Monkey, and Presumed Innocent, all of which have new seasons on the way. Sarandos made the comments at the UBS Global Media and Communications Conference, praising the studio’s leadership under Channing Dungey. He admitted Netflix has never been in the business of licensing content to third parties but called Warner’s TV studio a “really healthy business” they now plan to continue operating.
The Pragmatic About-Face
Here’s the thing: this is a fascinating pivot. Netflix built its empire on exclusivity and a “walled garden” mentality. For years, the strategy was to own and control everything, pulling content from other services to fuel its own growth. Now, they’re looking at the books of a major studio they’re about to own and basically saying, “Hey, this licensing revenue is pretty good. Let’s not mess with it.” It’s a surprisingly pragmatic, almost corporate, stance from a company known for disruptive moves. Sarandos is admitting that the growth opportunity in their core streaming subscription business has simply been bigger than building a studio-for-hire operation. But owning one? That’s a different story.
apple-for-now”>Why This Is Good News For Apple (For Now)
For Apple TV+, this is a huge sigh of relief. Let’s be real: shows like Ted Lasso are tentpoles. They drive subscriptions and cultural buzz. The idea of Netflix, a direct competitor, yanking those shows away was a nightmare scenario. Apple’s model has heavily relied on these high-profile licensed productions from studios like Warner and Sony to complement its in-house efforts like Severance. So this assurance keeps Apple’s lineup stable in the short term. But it also makes Apple permanently dependent on a competitor for some of its most valuable content. That’s a precarious long-term position. How long will Netflix feel charitable?
The Bigger Competitive Earthquake
While the Apple TV+ situation gets a temporary pass, the broader implications of this deal are staggering. An $83 billion transaction is going to reshape everything. Netflix, already the giant, absorbs HBO Max’s prestigious library and Warner’s massive film and TV production engine. We’re talking about a entity with unprecedented market power. This could affect everything from talent deals to what you pay for your subscription. Other studios might get squeezed. The pressure on services like Peacock, Paramount+, and even Apple TV+ to find mega-hits only intensifies. They can’t all just license from Netflix-Warner forever. The mandate to develop undeniable, owned originals just got louder.
A New Kind of Media Conglomerate
So what is Netflix becoming? They’re not just a streamer anymore. With this move, they’re turning into a hybrid: a dominant subscription service *and* a major supplier to the very competitors they’re trying to beat. It’s a vertically integrated model with a twist. They’ll make shows for themselves first, but they’re also happy to take a competitor’s money to produce a hit for them. It’s brilliant, in a ruthless way. It turns every dollar Apple or Amazon spends on a Warner-produced show into profit for Netflix. It hedges their bets. And it shows that in the brutal streaming wars, even the fiercest rivals can have a symbiotic, if deeply awkward, relationship. The old rules are truly out the window.
