Paramount Deal Still Under US Review, With Challenge Unlikely

Paramount Skydance Corp.’s proposed $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. remains under active review by US antitrust officials, according to people familiar with the matter, even though the odds of a legal challenge are low.

The Justice Department is still seeking comment from third parties and actively enforcing deadlines to comply with information requests, said the people, who asked to not be identified discussing the private review. The inquiries have continued since Netflix Inc. dropped out of the fight to buy Warner Bros., leaving Paramount the winner.

Paramount declined to comment. The Justice Department didn’t have an immediate comment.

The agency is taking a softer stance on merger enforcement and hasn’t blocked a deal on antitrust grounds since President Donald Trump took office. A lawsuit filed by Trump’s enforcers against Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. over its acquisition of Juniper Networks Inc. was settled days before trial.

Paramount said last month it has complied with two rounds of information requests from the DOJ and that a waiting period for the antitrust review has expired. On a conference call Monday with investors, Paramount said it has “made significant progress in securing regulatory clearances globally” and there are no “statutory impediments to close” its deal in the US.

Discussions are ongoing with the European Commission. Germany and Slovenia have given their approvals, the company said.

Paramount must also pass muster with state regulators. California Attorney General Rob Bonta told Bloomberg TV last week that this is “not a done deal” and that his office was continuing to investigate the merger. Absent a court order, however, the companies are permitted to close the deal during state investigations.

“It could mean less choices for consumers, higher prices for consumers,” Bonta said.

To contact the reporters on this story:
Leah Nylen in Washington at lnylen2@bloomberg.net;
Josh Sisco in San Francisco at jsisco6@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story:
Sara Forden at sforden@bloomberg.net

Rob Golum, Christopher Palmeri

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