A judge has temporarily halted Paramount’s attempt to buy Warner Bros. Discovery

The judge partially granted a request by dozens of state prosecutors to be appointed temporarily The $110 billion merger of Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery Waiting, he said diverse and Reuters. US District Judge Araceli Martinez Olguin said that based on the new company’s market share, “the court is satisfied that it can presume that the proposed merger is likely to violate antitrust laws,” and that the states have shown that “irreparable harm” could occur without a temporary restraining order.

A week agoCalifornia, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon and Washington have sued to block the deal for 28 days, saying the newly created “media giant” would hurt competition, and that if the deal was allowed to close, the companies could initiate actions that would be difficult to reverse such as layoffs and information sharing.

The judge issued a 14-day restraining order and set a preliminary order hearing for August 3rd. If the deal does not close by September 30, Paramount will owe Warner Bros. investors a debt. Millions of dollars depending on how long it takes, as stipulated in the agreement they used to have. Beat Netflix’s $83 Billion Offer.

California AG Rob Bonta he said over the weekend The filing fee starting in October “is a choice that Paramount made. They agreed to it as a party with Warner Bros. They may regret it, but they knew full well that this proposed merger would have to go through a regulatory process, and that it would take some time,” while also dismissing threats about Paramount moving out of California, and saying CNN’s bid plan would not resolve the lawsuit filed in the states. After the judge’s ruling on Monday, Bonta issued a statement saying: “This is the first decisive victory in our case to ensure that this massive merger never sees the light of day.”