Paramount submitted EU concessions to secure Warner Bros. Discovery merger approval
Paramount Global and Warner Bros. Discovery pursued a $111 billion merger, prompting antitrust challenges in the United States and Europe. According to Variety, Paramount Skydance filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by streaming subscribers that contested the deal, arguing the complaint lacked factual support. Deadline reported that Paramount Entertainment made a similar request to a judge, saying the antitrust claim had no viable basis. Gizmodo said California, New York and other states were preparing to file a lawsuit to block the merger over monopoly concerns. Variety quoted Paramount's chief legal officer alleging that Netflix was lobbying regulators and labor groups against the merger, a claim Netflix called unfounded. Deadline added that Paramount sent a letter to the Justice Department accusing Netflix of a campaign to block the transaction, which Netflix dismissed as absurd. The Hollywood Reporter noted that California was considering hiring top tech litigator Robert Van Nest to lead its antitrust challenge. The same outlet reported that Paramount argued the merger should be protected under the First Amendment while consumer groups and a coalition of states prepared legal challenges citing competition and news-media concerns. CNBC reported that the U. S. Justice Department approved the Paramount-Skydance acquisition of Warner Bros.
Discovery, stating the deal was unlikely to harm competition. NBC News echoed the approval, adding that regulators and some lawmakers continued to scrutinize the transaction. The Hollywood Reporter noted that the Department’s clearance came as a coalition of state attorneys general readied a legal challenge. NPR confirmed the Justice Department’s finding that the merger did not threaten competition in film, broadcast or streaming. Deadline later reported that state attorneys general in California and New York kept the investigation open despite the federal clearance, linking the dispute to the ongoing election cycle. NBC News said California’s attorney general confirmed the merger remained under investigation. Fox Business cited three Democratic senators urging the FCC to pause the merger pending a national-security review of foreign ownership stakes. Deadline added that Senators Cory Booker, Adam Schiff and Elizabeth Warren asked FCC Chairman Brendan Carr to halt the deal until the review was completed. The European Commission was expected, according to Deadline, to clear the merger pending possible concessions before the early-July deadline. The Hollywood Reporter said Britain’s culture secretary indicated the UK government might intervene to address media-plurality concerns, giving the parties until early July to respond. Finally, Deadline reported that Paramount submitted remedial pledges to the Commission to address EU concerns, with a decision anticipated by late July.
