Paramount’s settlement with 12 states ties its Warner Bros. Discovery merger to a five‑year lot‑preservation pledge, $300 million extra U. film investment, 30‑plus annual releases, and a news‑editorial board oversight.
The proposed settlement that would clear Paramount’s antitrust case with 12 state attorneys general requires the merged Paramount‑Warner Bros. Discovery entity to keep its California production facilities and not sell the Paramount Studios or Warner Bros. lots for at least five years, extending through Dec. 31, 2031. The agreement also obligates the company to invest an additional $300 million each year in U.S. film production, bringing total annual spending to at least $1.5 billion, and to release a minimum of 30 movies per year, with specific quotas for wide releases, tentpoles, independent films and co‑productions.
If the film‑production commitments are not met, the settlement provides a six‑month grace period after which the company would be forced to divest its entire ownership of Miramax Studios. The deal also mandates separate negotiations for basic‑cable channel distribution for five years; failure to honor those terms would trigger divestiture of a list of channels that includes BET networks, VH1, Comedy Central, Smithsonian, Destination America and Science. In addition, the merged firm must form a “News Editorial Independence Board” to set editorial principles for CNN and CBS News, and it must retain a compliance monitor, an independent monitoring trustee and a five‑state committee to enforce the settlement.
The settlement further requires Paramount to honor existing collective‑bargaining agreements, fund workforce‑training programs, and reimburse the states for reasonable attorneys’ and economic‑expert fees up to $40 million. Penalties for non‑compliance with any of these obligations are outlined in the settlement text.
The settlement remains subject to approval by the judge overseeing the antitrust case, and the final terms could be altered pending that judicial review.