UK approves Paramount Skydance acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery

The United Kingdom Competition and Markets Authority has today formally cleared the acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (NASDAQ: WBD) ("WBD") by Paramount Skydance Corporation (NASDAQ: PSKY) ("Paramount"), representing an important milestone in completing the transaction.

Paramount is grateful to the CMA for its constructive engagement and its review of the transaction.

Separately, Paramount has entered into a deed of covenant and undertaking with the UK Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. Paramount welcomed the opportunity to engage with DCMS and is pleased to have agreed on a path forward.

Paramount has already received competition clearances from antitrust and competition authorities in: the United States, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Kuwait, Montenegro, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, South Africa, South Korea, Ukraine, and by the European Commission, and the COMESA Competition Commission.

Additionally, Paramount has received foreign direct investment clearances in Australia, Belgium, Czechia, Germany, France, Italy, New Zealand, Romania, Spain, and Slovenia. The transaction was also unconditionally approved by European Commission under its Foreign Subsidies Regulation regime and by the Austrian Federal Competition Authority under its media merger control regime.

With the clearance from the Competition and Markets Authority, bodies and governments representing 66 jurisdictions have either cleared the transaction or chosen not to challenge it on competition and/or foreign direct investment grounds.

These clearances recognize that the combination of Paramount and WBD will enhance consumer choice and enable a creative-first company to invest in more projects and bring stories to audiences worldwide. It will create a scaled media and entertainment company capable of competing with the tech companies that have come to dominate the industry, strengthening the media ecosystem and creating more opportunities for creatives both in front of and behind the camera.