Paramount-Warner Merger Advances

Paramount Skydance reached settlements with state attorneys general and the Writers Guild of America, clearing major legal barriers to its merger with Warner Bros. Discovery. The deal would put major film studios, streaming services, CBS and CNN under one corporate roof. California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the settlement was not an endorsement, but a way to secure stronger antitrust protections. Paramount also accepted film-output rules, a 45-day theater window, more than $1.5 billion in added U.S. production spending, and worker aid. Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin still must approve the consent decree. She set a September 24 hearing, citing unresolved factual and legal questions.