Paramount to postpone Warner Brothers merger amid lawsuits
· UPIJuly 24 (UPI) -- Paramount Skydance said that it has paused its merger with Warner Bros. Discovery amid an antitrust lawsuit filed by several states aimed at stopping it.
The attorneys general of 12 states earlier this month sued to block the proposed merger because it could undermine competition in the entertainment industry, with U.S. District Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin pausing the merger on Monday for at least two weeks.
Paramount said in a court filing on Friday that it has reached an agreement with the state attorneys general to postpone the $111 billion merger until five days after a trial or until June 1, 2027, Variety and The Hollywood Reporter reported.
The company's hope, it said, is that pausing the merger could help to make it easier to eventually complete the deal, which Martinez-Olguin has prevented from closing until Aug. 18 at the earliest.
"This is the fastest and clearest way to prove that this transaction is good for competition, good for consumers and good for creators, a conclusion dozens of competition authorities around the world have already reached," Paramount said in the court filing.
Both sides in the lawsuit are expected to file a statement of their cases about the merger by July 31.
Paramount may also be liable to pay Warner Bros. shareholders $6.9 million per day if the merger does not go through by Sept. 30, based on the two companies' agreement.
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On the final legs of its Nationwide tour, Union Pacific's Big Boy locomotive departs Union Station in Kansas City, Mo., on July 23, 2026. Photo by Joe Marino/UPI | License Photo