By Dawn Chmielewski and Dawn Kopecki

(Reuters) -Warner Bros Discovery has received preliminary buyout bids from rivals Paramount Skydance, Comcast and Netflix, a source familiar with the matter said on Thursday, kicking off a potential sale of the century-old Hollywood studio.

The bids set the stage for a significant consolidation in the media industry and will determine the future of prized assets like HBO, the Warner Bros film library and the DC Comics universe.

Paramount is expected to bid for all of Warner Bros Discovery, including its cable television networks. Paramount’s bid is backed by the studio’s controlling shareholder, billionaire Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, who is among the world’s richest men.

The potential combination would enhance Paramount’s presence in movie the

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