Warner Bros. Discovery Brings BluTV under Its Portfolio after Acquisition Deal

Warner Bros. Discovery has acquired a Turkish streaming service known as BluTV. Before this acquisition, Warner held a 35% stake in the streaming company.

BluTV launched in 2016. Since its inception, this streaming service has recorded significant growth in original content and its library. It integrated Discovery+ on its platform in 2021. Earlier this year, it added HBO content and kids channels such as Cartoon Network and Cartoonito.

BluTV has so far produced 26 original films. Last year, it expanded into FAST channels. The streaming service has significantly expanded in the Middle East and North Africa as it targets Arabic and Turkish speakers.

Warner Is Expanding the Reach of Turkish Content
The GM CEE of the Middle East and Turkey at Warner Bros, Jamie Cooke, said this acquisition started a new chapter for the two companies.

The executive reminisced over the two decades that Warner has invested in Turkey, adding that BluTV would bring the first local SVOD player in Turkey under its portfolio.

Warner Bros. Discovery Acquires Turkish Streaming Service BluTV https://t.co/skj3lEU6ui

— Variety (@Variety) December 29, 2023

“The combination of compelling Turkish content and a broad range of the best international series and shows from Warner Bros,” Cooke said.

Discovery is an unbeatable recipe to be locally relevant and successful. Together, we bring Turkish audiences the most compelling viewing experience and expand the reach of Turkish content globally.

BluTV’s CEO, Deniz Şaşmaz Oflaz, also noted that the acquisition by Warner was made possible through Discovery, which started collaborating with the Turkish streaming site in 2021.

Oflaz also noted that this acquisition has made BluTV one of the global media companies. As such, the company would bring together the best local stories ever aired to viewers under the Warner umbrella, creating a leading streaming platform in Turkey. Warner will also help bring Turkish content to a global audience.

Allocating Capital towards Growth Initiatives
The acquisition of BluTV by Warner comes as the latter explores growth to maintain a competitive edge. While releasing the Q3 earnings result, Warner Bros’ CEO, David Zaslav, noted that the company would allocate more capital towards growth initiatives.

The news of the BluTV takeover comes amid reports that Zaslav met with the CEO of Paramount Global, Bob Bakish, to discuss a potential merger.

However, the news of this merger has not been received well in the market. The Shares of Warner Bros tanked shortly after the news was made public. Wall Street has also cast doubt over this merger going through.

If this merger is successful, it could create a giant in the news and entertainment industry. However, the sheer size of the resultant company will attract regulatory attention from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice.

As Warner ponders over the merger and its possibility of approval, it is making big plans to become competitive in the streaming industry.

Traditional entertainment companies have struggled to keep up with the reduced consumption of linear TV and increased demand for streaming content.

Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Disney+ are leading the global streaming industry. To attract more users, streaming companies are now exploring bundled subscriptions to lower costs and avoid costly acquisitions.

This strategy has been adopted by Netflix and Amazon Prime, which has seen subscribers enjoy more content at a lower subscription cost.