Press Releases
07/20/2026
Attorney General Tong Secures Critical Win in Lawsuit to Block Warner Bros./Paramount Merger
(Hartford, CT) — Attorney General William Tong today issued the following statement after the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California granted the states’ request for a temporary restraining order halting the merger of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (Warner Bros.) by Paramount Skydance Corporation (Paramount). The temporary restraining order halts the merger while the court considers a ruling on a preliminary injunction, which would block the merger for the duration of the litigation. Earlier this week, Attorney General Tong joined a coalition of 12 attorneys general in filing a lawsuit challenging the unlawful merger, which is expected to result in higher prices, lower content quality, and fewer movies and TV shows.
“This is a critical victory for American consumers, for objective and independent journalism, and for the workers, actors, artists and fans of our country’s celebrated film and television industry. We are suing to protect free and fair competition, choice and quality programming. This order demonstrates the strength of our case and the power of states stepping in to fill the void left by Trump’s absent Department of Justice,” said Attorney General Tong.
For more than a century, Warner Bros. and Paramount have stood astride the film and television industry as independent sources of creativity and competition. The proposed $110 billion merger — the largest in Hollywood history — would combine two of Hollywood’s five major film distributors and two of the five major owners of basic cable channels, extinguishing competition between Paramount and Warner Bros., and inflicting substantial harm on movie theaters, basic cable distributors, and ultimately, audiences nationwide.
The lawsuit alleges that the merger violates Section 7 of the Clayton Act, which holds that mergers that may substantially lessen competition or tend to create a monopoly are illegal. The attorneys general allege that, if Warner Bros. and Paramount are allowed to merge, it would lessen competition in three markets: film distribution, anticipated blockbuster film distribution, and licensing cable TV channels.
Currently, Paramount and Warner Bros. compete fiercely to create and distribute new, different, and innovative film and television content to American viewers. Movie theaters and TV distributors rely on competition between Paramount and Warner Bros. to incentivize creativity and secure competitive prices and terms for themselves and for audiences. TV distributors negotiate with Paramount, Warner Bros. and other cable channel owners to acquire the rights to distribute that content to subscribers. Alternatives are essential in these negotiations as is the leverage that each entertainment company provides to TV distributors and movie theaters. For example, if Paramount insists on onerous financial terms, its negotiating partner can gain leverage by turning to Warner Bros. and vice versa. Paramount’s proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. will end this competition, threatening viewers with higher prices, the decline of theatrical exhibition of films, and a reduction in the variety, quality, and amount of content distributed.
Assistant Attorneys General Julián Quiñones and Franklin Kanin, and Deputy Associate Attorney General Nicole Demers, Chief of the Antitrust Section are assisting the Attorney General in this matter.
- Twitter: @AGWilliamTong
- Facebook: CT Attorney General
Media Contact:
Elizabeth Benton
elizabeth.benton@ct.gov
Consumer Inquiries:
860-808-5318
attorney.general@ct.gov