Paramount Skydance has expressed its desire to force the American states obstructing its merger with Warner Bros. Discovery to assume the costs and fees generated by the transaction's postponement. This request was formalized on Monday, the 17th, through a new document within the antitrust process challenging the operation.
The company requested that the states involved in the lawsuit provide a guarantee of $1.88 billion (approximately R$ 9.8 billion) to cover potential losses resulting from the merger's delay.
In July, a coalition of 12 state attorneys general, led by California Attorney General Rob Bonta, initiated a lawsuit aimed at blocking the $110 billion (about R$ 572 billion) union between Paramount and Warner.
This operation aimed to unite two major film studios—Paramount and Warner Bros.—in addition to consolidating a vast set of cable TV channels in the United States and the streaming platforms HBO Max and Paramount+.
The state attorneys general allege that such a merger would violate the Clayton Antitrust Act, legislation over a hundred years old that prohibits acquisitions and mergers deemed harmful to competition.
A Paramount spokesperson mentioned the Clayton Act and other federal regulations, arguing that they require the plaintiffs—in this case, the states—to provide a guarantee to cover potential damages caused by suspending the transaction during litigation.
Paramount stated: 'Here, every month of delay brings substantial and quantifiable financial consequences.'
The company informed the Judiciary in the document presented that, up to the conclusion of the trial and the presentation of final arguments by the parties, Paramount had already disbursed $1.3 billion in irrecoverable maintenance fees to Warner Bros. shareholders.
Additionally, Paramount argues that the delay jeopardizes the validity of the regulatory approvals that the companies spent months obtaining.
According to the document, 'Without a guarantee, even a complete victory on the merits would not recover a single dollar of these extraordinary losses. This is precisely why federal legislation requires plaintiffs to provide a guarantee as a condition for receiving preliminary measures, such as the court-approved order.'
In its statement, Paramount specified that the requested $1.88 billion corresponds to a 'direct calculation of the maximum potential consideration related to ticking fees and financing costs arising from this process.'
However, the company emphasized that these are not the only costs associated with the operation's delay. Paramount added that due to a delay of at least eight months in finalization, there will be no integration or increase in investments in content, production, and creative talent by the combined company. Employees of both companies are also affected by the uncertainty generated by the merger's postponement.
Besides California, the group of states bringing the lawsuit against Paramount includes a total of 12 states, led by California Attorney General Rob Bonta. The action was filed in July, asserting that the merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery violates the Clayton Antitrust Act, established more than a century ago to prevent concentrations that harm competition.
