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ParaBros Foes Urge Court To Reject Settlement In Midnight Filings: “This Merger Lessens Competition”
Developing
In Short: Block the Merger coalition urges court to reject settlement, arguing it reduces competition.
The Block the Merger coalition filed an urgent amicus brief in federal court Thursday, urging a judge to reject the antitrust settlement for Paramount's $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery.
The coalition's brief criticizes the behavioral remedies proposed by the parties, arguing that they do not adequately preserve competition.
The coalition contends that the settlement's temporary film commitments and cable provisions fall short of preserving competition, focusing instead on releases and spending without ensuring which projects receive support.
The coalition also argues that the cable provisions regulate negotiations without ensuring competition over the perspectives that are broadcast.
What this adds
The coalition's filing comes after California's Attorney General publicly criticized the behavioral remedies in the settlement.
What's still developing
- Plus, the Ellison-run Paramoint kinda said it all just after Block the Merger first filed their motion early Thursday to be granted the right to brief.
- “But whatever the reasons for the States’ about-face, neither time nor circumstance changes the fact that this merger lessens competition.” “The structure of the proposed consent decree puts Plaintiff States in the position of simultaneously representing two sets of stakeholders whose fundamental interests trade off,” BTM’s brief says.