The European Commission has conditionally approved the acquisition of the American media company Warner Bros. Discovery, which owns TVN, by Paramount Skydance.
This approval is contingent upon Paramount fulfilling commitments related to film distribution, as noted by the Commission.
The Commission conducted an antitrust review to assess whether the $110 billion deal would disrupt competition in the EU market.
As part of the concessions proposed by Paramount, the company must sell its stake in United International Pictures within 13 months. This is the entity through which Paramount and Universal distribute films to theaters. The Commission concluded that allowing Warner Bros. films to also be distributed via United International Pictures would pose a risk of monopoly in the EU market.
Paramount’s portfolio includes Paramount Pictures, CBS, Nickelodeon, MTV, and the streaming service Paramount+. Warner Bros. Discovery controls HBO, the Max platform, CNN, Warner Bros. Studios, Discovery Channel, and Cartoon Network, as well as the TVN Group in Poland.
The U.S. Department of Justice has already given the green light for Paramount’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. On Monday, a federal court in Oakland suspended the transaction until August 3. A hearing will take place on that date to determine whether the completion of the deal should be delayed during ongoing legal proceedings, which could take several months.
