Paramount has reached an agreement with a coalition of 12 state attorneys general, removing one of the biggest obstacles to completing its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery.The agreement comes shortly before the company was set to begin accruing a daily US$ 7 million fee on October 1. The deadline had been seen as a key point in the battle over the US$ 111 billion deal, described as the largest merger in Hollywood history.The states' lawsuit had put the transaction on hold, with a trial scheduled for March 2, 2027. The antitrust case sought to block the deal, even after it had received prior approval from the U.S. Department of Justice.California Attorney General Rob Bonta led the coalition. Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin had granted a 28-day restraining order, finding that the states had made a strong case that the merger could harm competition in the basic pay-TV and theatrical distribution markets.Paramount then agreed to pause the transaction until the case was decided on its merits rather than fight a request for a preliminary injunction. The states argued that combining the companies could raise prices and reduce options for movie theaters and cable and satellite TV providers, potentially passing costs on to consumers.Paramount maintained that the acquisition is pro-competitive and will lead to increased content production as it seeks to compete with platforms such as Netflix and Amazon.In recent weeks, the company also pressured Bonta to drop the lawsuit, including by threatening to leave California and move its operations to Texas or Tennessee. Democratic state lawmakers, IATSE and the Directors Guild of America also called for a settlement.
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