A federal judge has temporarily halted Paramount Skydance’s roughly $81 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, granting a request from a 12-state coalition challenging the merger on antitrust grounds.
U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín issued a 14-day restraining order Monday, ruling that “serious questions going to the merits remain” and noting Paramount itself had conceded no harm from a short delay. The order blocks a deal that would combine two major film studios, streaming platforms Paramount+ and HBO Max, broadcaster CBS, and news networks CBS News and CNN under one owner.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta, leading the coalition, called it “a critical first win” in blocking what states argue would reduce competition and raise prices for consumers. Paramount said it remains confident the states’ antitrust claims lack merit and vowed to defend the deal vigorously.
A hearing on a longer-term preliminary injunction is set for August 3. Paramount had hoped to close the transaction by July 22, and faces contractual penalties worth over $600 million per quarter if the deal isn’t finalised by September 30.
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