A US federal judge has temporarily halted the proposed $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery by Paramount Skydance.
US District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín, based in Oakland, ordered the two companies not to complete the transaction for 14 days. Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. had originally aimed to finalize the acquisition as soon as July 22.
The states of California and 11 others had already filed a lawsuit on July 13 seeking to block the merger, arguing it would harm competition in the film and cable television distribution markets.