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Paramount launches hostile bid for Warner Bros

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Re: Paramount launches hostile bid for Warner Bros

#271

Post by __turbobrew__ »

hollerith wrote: post #247
__turbobrew__ wrote: post #197

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People are given a choice on what they eat as well and many also eat junk food, despite it largely being agreed upon that junk food is not good for you. Both cheap entertainment and junk food cede your autonomy to large corporations whose main goal is to make you addicted to their product and extract the maximal amount of money. This is purely subjective, but I believe that the path to personal fulfillment does not i…

>large corporations whose main goal is to make you addicted to their product and extract the maximal amount of money. I wasted thousands of hours in the 1990s reading Usenet. The part of Usenet I used (i.e., not the binary newsgroups) never made anyone any money and was never intended to make money by the people who built and administered it. The software I used to read Usenet, namely Wayne Davison's trn, was likewis…

You raise a good point, addictive technology is not necessarily for profit. The difference is that being addicted to a decentralized technology means that no one actor can control you. Usenet was a distributed system with a distributed network of control.

The analog I would say is being addicted to Chess, which is decentralized activity.

Re: Paramount launches hostile bid for Warner Bros

#272

Post by bananaflag »

AlexandrB wrote: post #223
dabockster wrote: post #177

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That, plus fewer studios mean less creativity goes to the mainstream. If you thought AI slop was bad, go re-watch Star Wars Episode 8.

Seems like a bad example. The problem with Episode 8 was not lack of creativity. Episode 7 was a complete retread of "A New Hope" and a bigger offender. At least blue Jedi milk is new .

Episode 8 was a retread of Empire Strikes Back (ships chase through empty space while the main character trains with the old master on a wild planet). It seemed subversive just because ESB was subversive relative to ANH.

Re: Paramount launches hostile bid for Warner Bros

#273

Post by vachina »

unsungNovelty wrote: post #263

I dont know the political angle. But if the DVDs and Blurays still keeping rolling under Paramount for WB Archives, I want Paramount to get it. It's super unlikely that Netflix will let the WB Archive live with physical media. I mean, the way things are going, it's unlikely in both the cases. But I would get more time to collect everything I want by then with Paramount. Also, under Paramount WB Archive would be in th…

What is the difference between bits on a Blu-ray vs on a drive platter?

Re: Paramount launches hostile bid for Warner Bros

#274

Post by petersellers »

__turbobrew__ wrote: post #270
petersellers wrote: post #244

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I disagree with your premise that your non-preferred form of entertainment is equivalent to eating junk food. I’m sorry that you were addicted to playing video games (truly) but I think your past experience is preventing you from thinking rationally about this. People can find fulfillment from many different things, including the ones that you personally don’t find fulfilling. One's fulfillment is also irrelevant wit…

Suggesting that personal fulfillment should not be controlled by a corporation is not elitist — it is philosophy. You disagree with my philosophy, which is fine. I typed out my ideas as they came to me, so I may have missed the mark. The core idea I want to portray is that you can choose not to play the game of for profit corporations. You can walk away.

> Suggesting that personal fulfillment should not be controlled by a corporation is not elitist — it is philosophy.

So now if I choose to play a video game, that means my personal fulfillment is being controlled by a corporation? You seem to be conflating one's agency to choose versus a corporation having utter control over one's choices. Again, I'm not trying to be disrespectful, but you mentioned being addicted to video games and I think that is affecting your objectivity. As someone who plays video games only a few hours a week, your claim sounds ridiculous.

> I typed out my ideas as they came to me, so I may have missed the mark. The core idea I want to portray is that you can choose not to play the game of for profit corporations. You can walk away.

Sure, no argument there - but that's not what you said originally.

Choosing to play a video game made by a corporation doesn't mean the corporation is controlling one's fulfillment, nor does it mean one is not getting fulfillment or satifsfaction from it (your words).

Re: Paramount launches hostile bid for Warner Bros

#276

Post by renegade-otter »

NickC25 wrote: post #154
notepad0x90 wrote: post #143

I just realized that the netflix ceo is a big-time democratic party donor, and that paramount is supposedly being supported by larry ellison (big-time republican/trump donor) and saudis? I'm sensing a strong political/influence angle here by the billionaires.

>supposedly My man, you don't have to mince words here. This hostile bid is backed by Jared Kushner, who is the President's son in law. One Rich Asshole owns Paramount, and is most certainly supporting the bid here. This deal would also leave CNN in a very vulnerable position (they are owned by WB), which is exactly what Trump wants.

One thing that is remarkable is how fast American media companies are folding or getting scooped up by the oligarchs in order to bring the sacrificed carcass to the ruler. Even Putin did not have it this easy - took him years.

Re: Paramount launches hostile bid for Warner Bros

#277

Post by renegade-otter »

kulahan wrote: post #116
clumsysmurf wrote: post #109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Some context: "Affinity Partners, the private equity firm led by Jared Kushner, is part of Paramount's hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros Discovery, according to a regulatory filing." https://www.axios.com/2025/12/08/jared-kushner-paramount-war...

Thank you, I had no idea how this was politically related, and honestly cannot keep track of all the corruption these days anyways. How does anyone? This is pretty much a genuine question.

The Bulwark is fairly on top of the pillaging that's happening in the US government.

Re: Paramount launches hostile bid for Warner Bros

#278

Post by renegade-otter »

mmooss wrote: post #198
kulahan wrote: post #116

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thank you, I had no idea how this was politically related, and honestly cannot keep track of all the corruption these days anyways. How does anyone? This is pretty much a genuine question.

"all" is a high standard. This issue has been in the news for awhile. Read a major, serious news source like The Economist or NY Times.

The news are flooded with these stories, for anyone who cares, but I imagine what we don't know is even more shocking.

Re: Paramount launches hostile bid for Warner Bros

#279

Post by dboreham »

pessimizer wrote: post #199
feb012025 wrote: post #68

The most concerning aspect for me is the obvious and conspicuously-timed consolidation of these companies under David Ellison. Within the past few months he's taken control of Paramount, CBS, The Free Press, and now he's working on Warner Bros. From everything I've seen he's basically an ideologue, and has already re-structured CBS to align with his vision. Just something that seems very out in the open yet kind of p…

The Free Press wasn't worth anything, it's a blog with marginal readership. The creepy part is that Bari Weiss, a dimwit, was given $200M for that blog, put in charge of CBS News, and made a political commissar of all these new Oracle media properties with the brand names that Boomers love. This thread is using it as an opportunity to scream about Trump, but Democrats will be all in on this. They have the same funder…

They probably figured the plots of "Succession" and "The Morning Show" could be...merged.

Re: Paramount launches hostile bid for Warner Bros

#280

Post by dboreham »

mike_h wrote: post #240
willio58 wrote: post #185

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Larry Ellison is also a very public supporter of Israel and the IDF, as recently as a few months ago speaking in support of Israel’s actions in Gaza.

He’s the largest individual donor to the IDF.

Wait...individuals can donate to a country's army?
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