CMA formally begins investigating Paramount's $110bn WBD merger

The CMA’s initial period of investigation begins on 10 June 2026, the first working day after the date of the commencement notice was issued. As a result, the deadline for the CMA to announce its decision whether to refer the merger for a phase two investigation is 7 August 2026. However, the statutory deadline can be extended in certain limited circumstances.

The CMA gives this notice under section 96(2a) of the Enterprise Act 2002, published pursuant to Section 107(1)(i) of the Enterprise Act 2002. This is reportedly to determine whether the deal will result in a “substantial lessening of competition” in the UK.

This commencement notice closes a two-week “invitation to comment” period that ran from 13 April 2026 to 27 April 2026. This comment section of the information-gathering process enabled interested parties to submit to the CMA any initial views on the impact that the transaction could have on competition in the UK. During this time, more than 1,000 filmmakers and executives signed an open letter expressing their “unequivocal opposition” to the merger. 

The letter, signed by filmmakers such as JJ Abrams, David Fincher, Ben Stiller, and Denis Villeneuve, said: “This transaction would further consolidate an already concentrated media landscape, reducing competition at a moment when our industries – and the audiences we serve – can least afford it. The result will be fewer opportunities for creators, fewer jobs across the production ecosystem, higher costs, and less choice for audiences in the United States and around the world. Alarmingly, this merger would reduce the number of major US film studios to just four.”

For this CMA inquiry, Daniel Norcott is serving as the Principal Case Officer. Case Officers Shivani Malik and Erin Mackenzie will support him.

However, Robert Ambrose, Co-Founder and CEO of Caretta Research, is not hopeful about this course of action. He tells IBC365: “We have to question the ability of any individual national regulator in a third country to intervene in US transactions that have the clear blessing of the American President. The parochial concerns of UK cinema owners and indie producers are not going to trump Trump.

“Combined, Paramount and WBD will have revenue in the region of $66bn, making the new entity far more competitive with Disney ($94bn) and Netflix ($45bn)... [Anyway,] for the average consumer, the merger is likely to have a positive impact. Paramount and WBD individually have been sub-scale streamers and bogged down with a ridiculously complicated portfolio of OTT brands that have failed to punch through the Netflix/Prime/Disney/YouTube oligopoly.

“Consolidating the current sprawl of Paramount+, (HBO) Max, Discovery+, Pluto TV, TNT Sports, and Channel 5 into a single super-app with one subscription would be a much more compelling and easier-to-understand consumer proposition. Offering real competition to the mainstay streamers will be a much better outcome for global consumers than worrying about cinema release windows.”

Nevertheless, the European Commission has filed to examine the merger under its Foreign ⁠Subsidies Regulations. These regulations were set out to address distortions caused by foreign subsidies in the EU market. The regulator's concern lies with the consortium of seven investors funding Paramount's investment. 

In an SEC filing, Paramount confirmed that the Lawrence J. Ellison Revocable Trust is providing $11.8bn, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund is putting forward $10bn, Abu Dhabi's L’imad Holding Company is investing $7bn, and the Qatar Investment Authority has a $7bn stake. Tencent, RedBird, and Affinity Partners are contributing the remaining sum.

According to Reuters, the European Commission will decide by 14 July 2026 whether to ​clear the deal or open ​a full-scale 90-working-day investigation.

Meanwhile, in a parallel investigation across the globe, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has ruled that the merger may be carried out, following a 14-day waiting period. The waiting period is scheduled to expire at 10:00am (Eastern Time) on June 23, 2026.

In its decision, the ACCC concluded: “The acquisition is unlikely to have the effect of substantially lessening competition in relation to the wholesale supply of films for theatrical release in Australia.”

Overall, the regulatory body reasoned: “While the acquisition would remove competition between Paramount and Warner Brothers, the merged entity would continue to be constrained by other film studios post-acquisition. The materials do not support the view that Paramount and Warner Brothers are particularly close competitors or that they compete more closely with each other than with the other major film studios. The merged entity is unlikely to have a sufficiently strong position in the supply of wholesale [audiovisual] content to enable it to successfully foreclose rivals’ access to [audiovisual] content.”

Additionally, in recent weeks, Paramount has received the necessary approvals for the merger from competition authorities in Saudi Arabia, Ukraine, Serbia, and North Macedonia, and from foreign direct investment authorities in Germany, Slovenia, Belgium, Czechia, New Zealand, Italy, France, and Romania.

Warner Bros. Discovery’s stockholders first voted to approve the merger with Paramount Skydance in April 2026, after David Ellison, Chairman and CEO of Paramount Skydance, promised a series of production and theatrical release plans, and Netflix withdrew from the prolonged bidding war.

The CMA first revealed it would launch an inquiry into Paramount Skydance's planned $110bn acquisition in April 2026. Discover more here.