Judge approves settlement in Paramount-Warner Bros. case

A federal judge on September 30 approved a settlement resolving a 12-state antitrust challenge to Paramount’s proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, removing a legal obstacle to the merger but not completing the transaction. U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín approved a consent decree negotiated by Paramount and the states, led by California. The commitments will apply to the combined company for five years after closing, and the court will have authority to enforce them. The decree resolves the states’ lawsuit, which challenged the deal on competition grounds. The agreement requires the merged company to release at least 30 theatrical films annually in each of its first two years, followed by at least 32 a year in the next three. It also commits the company to invest at least $300 million annually in U.S. film and television production for five years. The settlement includes provisions concerning distribution of cable networks and editorial independence at CNN and CBS News, including independent editorial boards. How that oversight will work in practice has not been established in the reports.