Paramount settlement shows states retain leverage after US DOJ ends merger probe
By Flavia Fortes ( September 21, 2026, 21:05 GMT | Comment) -- Paramount Skydance’s agreement to settle the 12-state challenge to its proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery would remove the last material obstacle to closing the $110 billion transaction. But the deal also demonstrates the leverage state attorneys general can retain over a national merger even after the US Justice Department — and competition authorities in nearly 70 jurisdictions — have declined to intervene.Paramount Skydance’s agreement to settle the 12-state challenge to its proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery would remove the last material obstacle to closing the $110 billion transaction. But the deal also demonstrates the leverage state attorneys general can retain over a national merger even after the US Justice Department — and competition authorities in nearly 70 jurisdictions — have declined to intervene....
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