Paramount-Warner merger cleared by US judge

A US federal judge on Wednesday approved a settlement between Paramount and a group of US states, clearing the way for Paramount's takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery.

Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin of California signed a consent decree that makes Paramount's concessions legally binding for five years. The court will have power to enforce the commitments.

Paramount, run by David Ellison, won a bidding war against Netflix in February for assets including Warner Bros. Pictures, CNN and the HBO Max streaming service. The Trump administration approved the deal in June without demanding changes to Paramount's business, before 12 US states sued to block the transaction.

The settlement includes safeguards meant to address concerns raised by movie-industry opponents and news media groups, including a board intended to protect CNN's editorial independence. The decree also commits the merged studio to release 30 movies in each of the first two years of the deal, and 32 in each of the following three years.

Financing for the deal reportedly includes about $24 billion in equity from the sovereign wealth funds of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Abu Dhabi. Larry Ellison, the billionaire Oracle founder and David Ellison's father, provided major funding and a guarantee to lenders backing the deal.