British Regulator May Challenge Paramount Takeover Of Warner Bros. Discovery

Britain’s civilization curate whitethorn situation Paramount Skydance’s takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery — presenting a imaginable speed-bump to David Ellison’s scheme to wrap up his $111-billion woody by September.

Earlier this month, Paramount secured the U.S. Justice Department’s blessing to bargain nan Warner assets, which see CNN, HBO, Cartoon Network, Animal Planet and nan Warner Bros. movie and TV studios successful Burbank.

Paramount besides must triumph nan support of British and European regulators, who are known for drilling profoundly into media matters because of their power connected society.

Britain’s Office of Communications took a preliminary measurement this period by opening an investigation into Ellison’s projected merger.

On Tuesday, Lisa Nandy, Britain’s Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, notified Parliament that she was inclined to intervene successful the blockbuster deal.

In a written statement, Nandy cited her expertise to measurement successful connected “public liking grounds,” owed to concerns astir maintaining a competitory media marketplace successful Britain.

“The UK’s move to intervene successful nan Paramount–WBD woody confirms what we’ve been saying for months. The existent regulatory consequence was ne'er successful nan US — it’s successful Europe,” Forrester VP Research Director Mike Proulx said Tuesday successful a statement.

While Nandy cautioned she has not made “a last determination connected involution astatine this stage,” she has invited Paramount and Warner Bros. to respond to her concerns by July 6.

June 2026 photograph of Culture, Media and Sport Secretary Lisa Nandy arriving astatine Downing Street for nan play Government furniture gathering successful London.

(Alishia Abodunde/Getty Images)

Paramount did not connection contiguous comment.

The institution owns CBS News, children’s transmission Nickelodeon and Channel 5, 1 of nan largest over-the-air tv broadcasters successful nan United Kingdom.

Warner Bros. Discovery owns CNN, Cartoon Network and TNT Sports, which broadcasts nan Olympics, Champions League and Premier League shot matches.

“I americium conscious that nan projected acquisition is world successful nature,” Nandy wrote successful her statement. “In reaching this decision, my attraction has been, and will remain, connected nan UK nationalist liking and nan scope of services disposable to UK audiences, including Channel 5, TNT Sports, Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, and CNN International, arsenic good arsenic Paramount+ and HBO Max.”

If Nandy decides to intervene, nan Office of Communications, known arsenic Ofcom, would motorboat an appraisal of nan deal. Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority besides would find really nan merger mightiness reshape nan competitory landscape.

Teams from nan 2 companies person been huddling for months to scheme for nan melding of nan 2 operations arsenic soon arsenic Paramount receives each of its regulatory approvals.

Australia, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, Ukraine, Serbia, France and Italy person already fixed their approvals to nan deal.

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund is readying to lend $10 cardinal to thief nan billionaire Ellison family propulsion disconnected nan merger, which would make nan Saudi royal family a significant, though passive, equity owner. In addition, nan royal families of Qatar and Abu Dhabi person agreed to each lend $7 cardinal successful equity financing.

The Federal Communications Commission must measure nan overseas ownership stakes owed to Paramount’s holding of CBS broadcast licenses. U.S. antitrust regulators already person concluded nan operation would not break national anticompetition laws.

Approval had been expected because President Trump — who has friends ties pinch Ellison and his father, tech billionaire Larry Ellison — favors nan deal.

Trump has been eager for changes astatine CNN.

The U.S. authorities stopped short of asking Paramount to make concessions aliases divestitures. Many expect that Paramount whitethorn person to reconfigure its children’s tv holdings overseas owed to nan projected operation of 2 ample players — Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network.

Nandy suggested that Britain besides should scrutinize nan effect of combining 2 awesome streaming services HBO Max, a Warner property, pinch Paramount+.

HBO programming, including “Game of Thrones,” “Boardwalk Empire,” and “Succession,” has agelong been celebrated successful Britain.

A conjugation of authorities attorneys general, led by California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta, besides is expected to situation nan deal, successful part, owed to concerns astir news media consolidation. Bonta’s agency has said nan matter remains nether review.

Opposition to nan woody has been building successful nan U.S. for months. A group of Hollywood activists — led by actors Jane Fonda and Mark Ruffalo — person spearheaded a “block nan merger” campaign that now has support from much than 5,000 intermezo workers.

The group’s unfastened missive calls connected Bonta to return action to thwart nan Ellison description effort. Paramount’s Chief Legal Officer Makan Delrahim has blasted nan campaign, calling it “fear-mongering” and a partisan distortion of antitrust law.

Forrester’s Proulx noted differences successful attitudes toward nan woody among nan various constituencies.

“For US consumers, this merger has go a proxy conflict astir political power and power of media,” Proulx said. “In nan UK, it’s being treated arsenic a structural title rumor wherever regulators, not consumers, will determine really this woody plays retired and really agelong it takes.”