States sue to block Paramount/WBD merger that was approved by Trump admin
AG: Deal will bring "higher prices, lower quality, and less content for film and TV."
A group of 12 states led by California sued Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery today in an attempt to block a $111 billion merger that was greenlit by the Trump administration last month.
"The unlawful merger of these two entertainment behemoths would lead to higher prices, lower quality, and less content for film and television, harming movie theaters, basic cable distributors, and ultimately, audiences on every sofa and movie theater seat in the US," California Attorney General Rob Bonta said.
The merger would combine two of the largest movie studios and merge streaming service Paramount+ with HBO Max. Netflix previously had a deal to buy WBD's streaming and movie studios businesses, but Paramount succeeded in a hostile takeover bid helped along by support from the Trump administration.