Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos never met with President Trump or White House officials during his visit to Washington, according to sources. Speculation was raised that the meeting at the White House prompted Netflix to drop out of the bidding war for Warner Bros. Discovery, but Netflix had already decided not to increase its bid and instead chose to hand over the deal to Paramount. The news of this meeting led to accusations that the company's meetings with Trump administration officials may have influenced its decision to abandon the bid for the WBD deal. However, Netflix maintains that the transaction they negotiated would have created meaningful shareholder value and led to regulatory approval.