A federal judge has set a March 2027 trial date for the antitrust challenges to Paramount’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, CNN’s parent company.
The trial timeline is another setback for Paramount, which had wanted to complete the merger this summer.
A coalition of state attorneys general and the Writers Guild of America both filed lawsuits in mid-July seeking to stop the merger. After Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín issued a temporary restraining order pausing the deal, Paramount agreed to stand still until a ruling after trial or until June 2027, whichever comes first.
Paramount then proposed to have the trial in November; the states and writers challenging the merger proposed an April start date, asserting that more time is needed to gather evidence and prepare arguments.
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On Tuesday, Martínez-Olguín said the trial will begin March 2 and run for 12 court days.
The timeline set by the court means the merger will remain in limbo for at least seven more months, putting further strain on the companies and financiers involved.
The delay will prove costly for Paramount. Under the merger agreement, the company must pay WBD shareholders roughly $7 million for every day after September 30 that the deal has not closed.
A March trial date means Paramount will owe well over $1 billion in so-called “ticking fees” before the judge ever rules.
The trial date announcement does not preclude the possibility of a settlement, though there are no indications that the parties are currently discussing one.
On Tuesday afternoon, when Paramount reported quarterly earnings, the company reiterated that “we fully expect the transaction to close and remain focused on preparing for a successful combination once it is complete.”
Earlier in the day, Paramount CEO David Ellison penned an op-ed for The New York Times defending the deal and vowing to ensure CNN’s editorial independence.
Ellison wrote that he believes the legal challenge from the states “is not really about market share”; it’s about “whether I can be trusted as a steward of Warner’s CNN.”
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He repeated his prior pledges to uphold CNN’s editorial independence, and wrote, “Our journalists will continue to answer to the facts and to all the people they serve — not to any party or cause.”
Ellison wrote that “both suits imagine a Hollywood that no longer exists — an industry ruled by a handful of legacy studios.”
When asked about Ellison’s assertion that the fight is really over the ownership of CNN, a spokesperson for California Attorney General Rob Bonta responded, “Our challenge to the Warner Bros./Paramount merger is a clear-cut antitrust case. This merger is unlawful under federal law.”
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