Netflix on Monday enjoyed a slight resurgence in its stock price following a report that raised the possibility Verizon Communications might purchase the company.
The report – raising eyebrows over the fate of Netflix – was widely cited, but couldn't be easily found as dealReporter is a subscription-based service.
Shares of Netflix closed at $75.26 on the NASDAQ, up $4.37 or 6.16 percent.
The dealReporter article surfaced about a week after Reuters reported that Verizon is planning to launch a service that would allow customers to stream movies and TV shows over the Internet. Verizon's potential involvement in a so-called over-the-top service appeared to become even more plausible after news that the telecommunications titan is planning to partner with Redbox – the DVD kiosk – to debut a TV and movie streaming and download service in May.
Verizon hasn't confirmed the reports.
Such an OTT service would mean further competition for Netflix, which has seen its once-formidable stock price evaporate after the company announced a 60 percent price increase for customers who subscribed to both its DVD by mail and streaming video services.
Verizon or another potential bidder for Netflix wouldn't just have to consider Netflix's market value ($3.95 billion); suitors would have to take into account the company's $4.5 billion in commitments to license TV shows and movies, according to a Deadline.com report.
“It would be far cheaper to buy Netflix’s subscribers than it would be to buy the service," the article quoted Janney Montgomery Scott analyst Tony Wible as stating.
