With Paramount’s pending legal battle with a range of state Attorneys General being one of the final hurdles to its pending merger with Warner Bros., they will no doubt be keen to bring legal actions to a close as soon as possible. Especially as their promised ticking fee for delays in the regulatory approval processes will kick in from the start of October. Blake & Wang P.A. entertainment lawyer, Brandon Blake, shares some news on the matter.
Talks Set for End of October
Despite some acrimonious back-and-forth words traded in the press, Paramount and the California Attorney General, Rob Bonta, are now set to meet for 2 days at the end of October to explore a potential deal. This could settle the pending state lawsuit challenging the merger bid.
The US Magistrate overseeing the matter, Judge Thomas Hixson, has set a date mid-week for both sides to settle on dates. The talks will also include the WGA.
Not a Done Deal, Yet
The talks will only be introductory, so that doesn’t mean we will automatically see a full resolution. Still, this case has become a major sticking point for the deal, and Paramount, at least, has much incentive to try to resolve remaining issues before the trial date, which is set for next year. After all, that promised ticking fee is starting to tick up quite loudly now.
Bonta, on the other hand, has been clear that he will only accept structural remedies. In this case, that will likely mean selling off parts of the combined business. To date, Paramount’s concessions have been purely behavioral, as we saw with their pledge to release at least 30 theatrical films with 45-day windows for the next three years.
This is certainly the most progress we’ve seen towards settlement so far. With at least a month’s worth of accumulated ticking fees behind it by the time talks start, we may see more willingness to negotiate from Paramount, particularly, on the matter.
