The Block the Merger Coalition has released the following statement following the UK’s approval of the Paramount Skydance - Warner Bros. Discovery merger: 

“UK Secretary Nandy’s ability to obtain major concessions from Paramount lends powerful credibility to the case 12 state attorneys general have brought here in the US. 

“If this merger required binding remedies even in the UK, where Paramount and Warner hold a far weaker market position and the CMA has grown reluctant to block big mergers, the dangers in the more concentrated US market are unmistakable. Here, the deal would unite two of the top three basic cable programmers and create exactly the anti-competitive, anti-consumer, and anti-creator harms our antitrust laws guard against.

“The concessions on fair access to the CNN, CBS, and Channel 5 archives, for commissioners and news entities to maintain editorial independence, and various promises not to consolidate elements of their business--including streaming services- are encouraging, but they’re not the whole fight. 

“The state AGs’ suit makes clear that this merger is illegal under US antitrust standards. Concessions, even when legally binding in theory, in practice prove almost impossible to enforce. 

“Our position remains the same – the Paramount Skydance-Warner Bros. Discovery merger is a dangerous consolidation that will harm film, entertainment, and independent press in markets around the world. State attorneys general hold independent authority to enforce antitrust laws, and we are confident they will prevail at trial and fully block this merger.”