Britain weighs antitrust intervention in Paramount-Skydance Warner Bros deal
Britain moved closer to intervention in Paramount Skydance’s $110 billion bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, citing media plurality, children’s TV and streaming control.
Britain moved closer to intervention in Paramount Skydance’s $110 billion bid for Warner Bros. Discovery after Lisa Nandy’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport flagged concerns over media plurality, children’s television and streaming services. The companies were given until July 6 to respond, adding a new political hurdle to a deal that has already cleared regulators in the United States, China, Australia, Germany, France and Saudi Arabia.
The Competition and Markets Authority opened its inquiry on April 13 and has set a Phase 1 deadline of August 7, leaving room for the government to decide whether the transaction should face a deeper probe. If ministers act, Britain could slow the timetable, increase pressure for remedies and raise the cost of closing the deal.
The transaction would bring together studio assets, news operations, streaming platforms and children’s programming under one ownership structure. UK officials are weighing whether the merger would concentrate too much influence over entertainment and information.
Reforms announced in November 2024 and May 2025 widened media-merger oversight to online news publications and magazines, and the later changes introduced a 15% cap for certain state-owned investors in newspapers and news periodicals.
The U.S. Justice Department approved the acquisition on June 12 after an eight-month investigation that reviewed more than two million documents and drew extensive third-party input. More than 1,000 entertainment professionals signed an open letter in April opposing the merger, while California Attorney General Rob Bonta and New York Attorney General Letitia James’ office were also examining possible state-level challenges.
Paramount Skydance chief executive David Ellison wants to honor the legacy of both companies while building a next-generation media and entertainment business. The company has also put a ticking fee of 25 cents a share in place for every quarter the deal stays open beyond September 30.
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