Paramount Skydance has agreed to pause its $110bn acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery until a ruling on several states’ challenge to the deal, or until 1 June 2027, according to court papers filed on Friday.
A group of 12 US states headed by California obtained a temporary restraining order earlier this week that blocked the merger from closing for 28 days, pending the outcome of a motion for a preliminary injunction.
The states allege that the deal should be blocked because it will reduce competition in the cable and theatrical markets.
A Warner-Paramount merger would bring together two of the five last legacy studios in Hollywood, as well as a host of TV networks, titles filling streaming libraries and news operations. That would include Warner’s HBO Max and CNN coming under the same roof of Paramount-owned CBS, movies including Top Gun and the Paramount+ streaming service.
More details to come …