Paramount Submits Concessions To Gain Euro Approval For WBD Deal
Paramount has offered concessions in a bid to smooth over European Commission concerns about its $111B deal for Warner Bros Discovery.
The European Commission confirmed a filing in which Paramount made its pledges, which the Ellison-family owned company believes will lead to approval and remove one of the final hurdles in the way of the mega-mergher.
Furthermore, a “new provisional deadline” a decision has been set for July 22, extended from the previous July 7. The EC doesn’t outline the specifics of such pledges, per its policies.
Last week, reports emerged that Paramount believed exiting the UIP pact would be enough to gain favor from the European Commission, with theater operators concerned over the resulting concentration of power.
Paramount didn’t specify its concessions today, but said in a statement it was “confident that this remedy directly and comprehensively addresses any concerns expressed in the European Commission’s preliminary assessment and support the path for timely clearance.”
The news comes after UK Culture Minister Louise Nandy said she was minded to intervene” in Paramount‘s takeover of WBD.
She has said that she wishes to assess whether the deal is in the best interests of UK audiences on plurality grounds, and has written to Paramount and WBD to outline her position. The country’s Competition and Markets Authority is separately continuing its investigation into the deal, with its findings feeding into Nandy’s work.
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