Oregon Withdraws Motion to Delay $110 Billion Paramount-Warner Bros. Merger

The Oregon attorney general's office on Friday withdrew its court motion to delay Paramount's proposed $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. The move removes one state-level obstacle for the media megadeal, but the transaction continues to face significant antitrust scrutiny from other states.

Oregon Cites Lack of Compliance

The Oregon Department of Justice accused Paramount of failing to cooperate with its investigation. "Paramount made it clear that they weren’t going to comply with the investigative demand, and that they think they’re above the law," the department said in a statement to Reuters.

Citing a desire not to "waste Oregonians' resources on these games," the agency said it has withdrawn the motion to "consider our next steps." The state had previously asked a Multnomah County court to compel Paramount to hand over records and to delay the deal by 60 days for review.

Broader Scrutiny Continues

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Despite Oregon's withdrawal, the merger is not yet in the clear. According to Reuters, other U.S. states may sue to block the acquisition as early as next week over competition concerns. The deal, which would combine two of Hollywood's four major studios, has also drawn criticism from actors and writers concerned about potential job losses.

Oregon's investigation sought documents related to:

• "Project Warrior," Paramount’s internal code name for its efforts to secure regulatory clearance.
• The company's lobbying of the Trump administration for support of the merger.

In response to the withdrawal, a Paramount spokesperson told Reuters, "We are pleased that the Oregon Attorney General has withdrawn its motion to delay this transaction." The spokesperson described the merger as "lawful" and "pro-competitive." Paramount had previously agreed not to close the transaction before July 22 amid the state's review.