Paramount/WBD merger delayed for months as states’ lawsuit moves toward trial

派拉蒙与华纳兄弟探索公司合并案推迟数月，各州诉讼进入审判阶段

Paramount and Skydance agreed to a longer-term delay of its $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, preventing the companies from combining until after a judge rules on the merits of a case in which a dozen states challenged the legality of the merger. 派拉蒙（Paramount）与天空之舞（Skydance）同意对其价值 1110 亿美元的华纳兄弟探索公司（Warner Bros. Discovery）收购案进行长期推迟。在法官就十几个州对该合并案合法性提出的诉讼做出实质性裁决之前，两家公司将无法合并。

Under a stipulation filed in court today, the states and companies agreed that the merger will not be completed and the firms will not integrate their operations until “five days after the merits determination in these matters,” or on June 1, 2027, whichever is earlier. The delay was also agreed to by the Writers Guild of America, which filed its own lawsuit to block the merger. If there is no merits determination by June 1, the plaintiffs could seek a preliminary injunction to keep blocking the deal. 根据今天提交给法院的一份协议，各州与相关公司达成一致：在“案件实质性裁决做出后的五天内”或 2027 年 6 月 1 日（以较早者为准）之前，合并将不会完成，双方也不会整合业务。美国编剧工会（WGA）也同意了这一延期，该工会此前已提起诉讼以阻止此次合并。如果到 6 月 1 日仍未做出实质性裁决，原告方可以寻求初步禁令以继续阻止该交易。

The agreement amounts to “a months-long halt” to the merger, New York Attorney General Letitia James’ office said. “Halting this merger while our case proceeds is a critical victory in our efforts to uphold the law and protect the film and television industries,” James said. 纽约州总检察长莱蒂西亚·詹姆斯（Letitia James）办公室表示，该协议意味着合并案将“暂停数月”。詹姆斯表示：“在我们的案件审理期间叫停此次合并，是我们维护法律、保护影视行业努力中的一次关键胜利。”

Paramount also claimed victory, telling media outlets that “the result is exactly what we have sought from the outset: a direct path to a trial based on the evidence. This is the fastest and clearest way to prove that this transaction is good for competition, good for consumers, and good for creators, a conclusion dozens of competition authorities around the world have already reached.” 派拉蒙也宣称取得了胜利，并向媒体表示：“这一结果正是我们从一开始就寻求的：一条基于证据进行审判的直接途径。这是证明该交易有利于竞争、有利于消费者、有利于创作者的最快、最清晰的方式，全球数十家竞争监管机构此前已经得出了这一结论。”

Led by California, 12 states sued Paramount and WBD and won a temporary restraining order against the merger on Monday. Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín at US District Court for the Northern District of California found that the deal is likely to reduce competition substantially and violate antitrust laws. The states sued after the merger was greenlit by the Trump administration. The US approval reportedly surprised US Department of Justice staff lawyers who led the agency’s investigation into the deal and were leaning toward recommending a lawsuit to block it. 以加利福尼亚州为首的 12 个州起诉了派拉蒙和华纳兄弟探索公司，并于周一赢得了针对该合并案的临时限制令。美国加州北区联邦地区法院法官阿拉塞利·马丁内斯-奥尔金（Araceli Martínez-Olguín）认为，该交易很可能会大幅削弱竞争并违反反垄断法。各州是在特朗普政府批准该合并案后提起诉讼的。据报道，美国的批准令负责调查此案的美国司法部律师感到惊讶，他们此前倾向于建议提起诉讼以阻止该交易。

States say the merger will eliminate competition by combining two of the five major Hollywood movie studios and two of the five major owners of basic cable TV channels. “We are eager to continue to make our case in court and celebrate another tremendous win in our effort to ensure this unlawful merger never sees the light of day,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta said today. 各州表示，此次合并将通过整合好莱坞五大电影制片厂中的两家，以及五大基础有线电视频道所有者中的两家，从而消除竞争。加州总检察长罗伯·邦塔（Rob Bonta）今天表示：“我们渴望继续在法庭上陈述我们的理由，并为我们确保这一非法合并永远不会实现所做的努力，庆祝又一次巨大的胜利。”

Moving to the merits

进入实质审理阶段

While the temporary restraining order was originally set to expire after 14 days, the judge was likely to grant a preliminary injunction that would continue to block the merger while litigation continues. Preliminary injunctions can be issued when a plaintiff convinces a judge that it is likely to succeed on the merits, and Martínez-Olguín already seemed convinced by the states’ arguments. By agreeing to a merger delay, the sides will skip the preliminary-injunction phase of district court litigation. 虽然临时限制令原定于 14 天后到期，但法官很可能会批准一项初步禁令，在诉讼期间继续阻止合并。当原告说服法官其在实质问题上胜诉的可能性较大时，法院可以发布初步禁令，而马丁内斯-奥尔金似乎已经被各州的论点所说服。通过同意推迟合并，双方将跳过地方法院诉讼中的初步禁令阶段。

In an order yesterday, the judge extended the temporary restraining order for another two weeks in preparation for preliminary-injunction proceedings. Given today’s agreement, there won’t be any need for the sides to file briefs or argue at a hearing over whether the merger should be delayed during litigation. 在昨天的一项命令中，法官将临时限制令延长了两周，以准备初步禁令程序。鉴于今天达成的协议，双方无需再提交简报或在听证会上就诉讼期间是否应推迟合并进行辩论。

“Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery today agreed to what the state Attorneys General and the WGA both sought from the court: the merger will be put on hold pending the outcome of the states’ and the WGA’s cases or until June 1, 2027, whichever comes first,” the Writers Guild of America said today. 美国编剧工会今天表示：“派拉蒙和华纳兄弟探索公司今天同意了各州总检察长和编剧工会共同向法院寻求的结果：在各州和编剧工会的案件结果出炉之前，或者在 2027 年 6 月 1 日之前（以先到者为准），合并将被搁置。”

Paramount could have tried to get a preliminary injunction overturned in the US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit. But that wouldn’t be Paramount’s only chance to appeal an adverse ruling. Either side could appeal in the 9th Circuit appeals court after getting a decision on the merits from Martínez-Olguín. 派拉蒙本可以尝试在美国第九巡回上诉法院推翻初步禁令。但这并非派拉蒙对不利裁决进行上诉的唯一机会。在马丁内斯-奥尔金做出实质性裁决后，任何一方都可以在第九巡回上诉法院提起上诉。

Media advocacy group Free Press described today’s agreement as a win for the plaintiffs, and said Paramount is only pretending to have gotten what it wanted. “Instead of fighting against an injunction and possibly losing now, Paramount’s lawyers have resigned themselves to waiting for a full antitrust trial in federal court,” Free Press co-CEO Craig Aaron said. “Paramount can pretend all it wants that it looks forward to that test, but that’s just more bluster from company mouthpieces trying to spin a major setback. Now this deal will face its day in court, and we are confident the evidence will show this mega-merger should be blocked.” 媒体倡导组织“自由新闻”（Free Press）将今天的协议描述为原告的胜利，并称派拉蒙只是在假装得到了它想要的东西。“自由新闻”联席首席执行官克雷格·亚伦（Craig Aaron）表示：“派拉蒙的律师没有选择现在就对抗禁令并可能面临失败，而是无奈地接受了等待联邦法院全面反垄断审判的结果。派拉蒙可以随心所欲地假装期待这场考验，但这不过是公司喉舌试图掩盖重大挫折的虚张声势。现在，这笔交易将面临法庭的审判，我们相信证据将表明这一巨型合并案应该被阻止。”