Paramount Sued By States In Bid to Block $111 Billion Warner Bros. Merger
A coalition of state attorneys general have sued Paramount to stop its $111 billion takeover of Warner Bros. In a much-anticipated lawsuit filed in...
Key points
- A coalition of state attorneys general have sued Paramount to stop its $111 billion takeover of Warner Bros.
- In a much-anticipated lawsuit filed in California federal court on Monday, the states allege that the acquisition will substantially throttle competition in wide-release and top-grossing theatrical distribution and cable licensing in violation of antitrust laws.
- The Justice Department in June signed off on Paramount’s bid to purchase Warner, finding that the merger will increase competition in the markets for streaming, linear TV and the development, production or distribution of films for theatrical release.
- A merger between Paramount and Warner will bring CNN under the family’s control.
What happened
A coalition of state attorneys general have sued Paramount to stop its $111 billion takeover of Warner Bros. In a much-anticipated lawsuit filed in California federal court on Monday, the states allege that the acquisition will substantially throttle competition in wide-release and top-grossing theatrical distribution and cable licensing in violation of antitrust laws. The Justice Department in June signed off on Paramount’s bid to purchase Warner, finding that the merger will increase competition in the markets for streaming, linear TV and the development, production or distribution of films for theatrical release. A merger between Paramount and Warner will bring CNN under the family’s control. In a lawsuit filed in April, Paramount subscribers alleged that the acquisition will substantially reduce competition in streaming, news and theatrical distribution. To curry favor for the merger and quell concerns, David Ellison has pledged to release at least 30 movies a year theatrically with minimum 45-day theatrical windows and operate Paramount and Warner Bros.