AI Generated Image
Paramount wants a $1.9 billion bond from state AGs fighting the Warner Bros. merger
CNN • • business
Key Points:
- Paramount has requested that the states suing over its Warner Bros. Discovery merger post a $1.9 billion bond to cover "ticking fees" and other costs incurred if the deal is delayed, citing significant daily financial losses starting October.
- The judge, Araceli Martinez-Olguín, previously waived bond requirements, recognizing the states’ lawsuit as serving important public interests, casting doubt on whether she will grant Paramount's new request.
- The "ticking fees" are part of the merger agreement, requiring Paramount to pay roughly $7 million daily after September 30 if the merger does not close, potentially leading to $1.3 billion in unrecoverable losses by the time of the March antitrust trial.
- The coalition of 12 state attorneys general, led by California AG Rob Bonta, rejected Paramount’s bond demand, emphasizing that Paramount agreed to the fee terms knowing regulatory review was expected and accusing the company of trying to pressure the states into a settlement.
- Antitrust experts suggest Paramount’s bond motion is a strategic effort to expedite appeals or coerce a pre-trial settlement, while the states maintain that taxpayers should not bear costs for fees Paramount contractually accepted.
