Judge clears the way for Paramount’s $111 billion Warner Bros. Discovery takeover
A federal judge approved Paramount’s settlement with 12 state attorneys general, removing the last obstacle to a merger that puts HBO, CNN, CBS and two major film studios under one roof. Closing is set for Oct. 6.
What we know: U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín on Wednesday approved Paramount Skydance’s settlement with California Attorney General Rob Bonta and 11 other state attorneys general, ending their antitrust lawsuit against the deal, the Los Angeles Times and Variety reported. The order was the final remaining barrier to the $111 billion acquisition, which had already been cleared by regulators in 68 jurisdictions, including the Justice Department, Variety said. The companies said the deal is expected to close Oct. 6, NBC News reported.
What gets combined: The merged company brings together the Warner Bros. and Paramount film studios, the HBO Max and Paramount+ streaming services, and TV networks including CBS, CNN, MTV, TBS and Comedy Central, with franchises such as Harry Potter, the DC Universe, “Game of Thrones,” “Yellowstone” and “Mission: Impossible,” Variety reported.
What the settlement requires: The five-year agreement, known as a consent decree, requires the combined company to release at least 30 films in theaters each year, commit an additional $1.5 billion to domestic film production, and set aside $47.5 million for workers who may be hurt by the merger, the Los Angeles Times reported. It creates a five-member panel to monitor the editorial independence of CBS News and CNN and bars selling or closing the Paramount lot in Hollywood or the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank. Wide releases must get a 45-day theatrical window, Variety reported, and backstop provisions require divesting studios or cable channels if the company fails to comply.
What the judge said: Martínez-Olguín wrote that the decree is “a fair, reasonable, and good faith approach to address the competitive harms alleged in the Complaint,” while acknowledging “meaningful grounds for disappointment” among critics who wanted more, Variety reported. Those hopes, she wrote, “do not rise to the level of legal violations upon which the Court can reject the parties’ negotiated resolution.”
Critics and leadership: The Block the Merger coalition said the deal, with “no meaningful structural remedies,” will “cost jobs, mute creativity, weaken independent journalism,” the Times reported. Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) had asked for an independent review. After the ruling, Paramount CEO David Ellison named Mattel CEO Ynon Kreiz co-CEO of the combined company; Kreiz joins Oct. 5 and will run day-to-day operations, NBC News reported.
What this means: A consent decree is a court-approved settlement: it resolves the lawsuit without a trial or a ruling that the merger is illegal, but its terms can be enforced by the court. For viewers, the biggest changes are still ahead — how HBO Max and Paramount+ are combined, and how CNN and CBS News operate under one owner.