California AG says settlement over Paramount-Warner merger would need strong structural remedies

California Attorney General Rob Bonta told CNBC that a settlement to end the antitrust case against Paramount Skydance’s proposed purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery would have to include strong structural remedies. He said the states’ complaint concentrates on three markets – film distribution, basic-cable TV programming and related services – and does not address issues such as streaming or CNN, which Paramount has raised.

Bonta and 11 other state attorneys general filed the lawsuit in July, arguing that the combined company would control roughly one-third of the nation’s film output and a similar share of basic-cable programming. The merger, initially slated for completion by Sept. 30, has been delayed until as late as June 2027, with a trial scheduled for March.

"If CEO David Ellison and Paramount want to come to the table in good faith, we are willing to talk," Bonta said, adding that the states prefer a boardroom resolution over a courtroom battle.

He emphasized that the size of the merged entity would create a presumptively illegal concentration under the Clayton Antitrust Act, which bans anticompetitive mergers. "The law has been on the books for over a century and this is a straightforward antitrust case," Bonta said.

Paramount has described the states’ lawsuit as a mischaracterization of competition in the entertainment industry and said it will vigorously defend the transaction, even considering an appeal to the Supreme Court if necessary. CEO David Ellison expressed confidence that the deal will close, while a Paramount spokesperson did not immediately respond to Bonta’s comments.