California Attorney General Rob Bonta told CNBC’s David Faber on Thursday that the group of states suing to block Paramount Skydance’s proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery would require “robust structural remedies” to reach a settlement in the antitrust case.

“[Paramount] wanted to talk about everything except for what this case is about. They want to talk about the streaming market, which we don’t allege in our complaint. They want to talk about CNN, which is not a focus of our complaint. They want to talk about the foreign regulators. We want to talk about the three markets that we set forth in our complaint, where we think there’s antitrust violation,” Bonta said.

Bonta and 11 other state attorneys general filed a lawsuit in July seeking to block the merger. The group of suing states also includes Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon and Washington. In the suit, the group focuses on the size of the combined company and how it would control nearly one-third of films and nearly a third of basic cable TV programming. 

Paramount, which initially sought to close the deal by Sept. 30, agreed to delay the proposed acquisition of WBD to as late as June 2027. A trial will be heard on the matter in March.

There has been widespread speculation about whether Paramount and the states will hold settlement talks to bypass the March trial.

“I will say that coming to the table has always been on the table. And if [CEO David] Ellison and Paramount want to come to the table in good faith and talk, we want to talk, too. We’re happy to have that conversation,” Bonta said. “We do prefer to resolve cases in the boardroom instead of the courtroom, but for now we’re bringing our case, and, you know, I hope they can focus on the actual allegations we make in our complaint.”

Bonta said it’s no secret Paramount wants the states to consider a settlement.

If the two companies were to combine, it would unite the famed movie studios Warner Bros. and Paramount, as well as a massive portfolio of TV networks including Paramount’s broadcast network CBS and pay TV channels such as its MTV and BET with WBD’s CNN, Discovery and others. It would also bring together streaming platforms Paramount+ and HBO Max. 

“Whether the market is shrinking or growing is really irrelevant,” Bonta said Thursday in response to the argument that the pay TV subscriber base has been decreasing due to the rise of streaming.

Bonta said a combined Paramount-WBD would create a “presumptively illegal market concentration” in the film and TV markets the group of attorneys general identified in the lawsuit.

“We are the ones who’ve looked at this from a straight-up law and facts perspective in the American economy under American law under Clayton Act Section 7, which applies here as antitrust law,” Bonta said. “[The law has] been on the books for over a century. And it’s just a straight up, meat-and-potatoes, black-and-white, bread-and-butter, antitrust case.”

The Clayton Antitrust Act is the more-than-100-year-old law that prohibits anticompetitive mergers and acquisitions.

Paramount has previously called the states’ lawsuit a “misrepresentation of competition in the entertainment industry today,” and said it plans to “vigorously defend the transaction and demonstrate that this challenge is inconsistent with sound competition and policy and the competitive realities of the media marketplace.”

Paramount’s lead trial counsel, Jeffrey Kessler, earlier told CNBC that Paramount “believes strongly” in the combination of the two companies and is prepared to bring the matter to the Supreme Court if it was faced with a prolonged blockade to closing the deal. 

During Paramount’s August earnings call, Ellison said he’s “confident” the deal will close.

A Paramount spokesperson didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment about Bonta’s remarks on Thursday.

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MANTENO, ILL. — Caulipower is expanding its pizza portfolio with the launch of its gluten-free, high-protein supreme pizza. The pizza is formulated with Greek yogurt and cauliflower.

Each pizza contains 42 grams of protein and 6 grams of fiber.

The high-protein pizza is now available for purchase at Walmart. An expanded retail rollout is expected, according to the company.

In line with the other nations of the UK it has appointed Exchange for Change for the Welsh scheme that will go live next year

The Welsh Government has appointed the same company that will operate return schemes for plastic bottles and metal cans from October next year across the whole of the UK.

Following a procurement process the Plaid Cymru administration has selected Exchange for Change as its deposit management organisation for the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) for drinks containers. The scheme will include plastic (PET), metal and glass drinks containers from day one.

Customers will pay a 20p refundable deposit when buying single-use plastic bottles, steel and aluminium cans. They will get the money back when they return the clean, uncrushed container to an approved return point. As well as helping to reduce littering the scheme and support the transition from recycling to reuse.

A four-year transition period will apply to glass drinks containers, during which time they will also be exempt from labelling requirements while carrying a zero pence deposit.

Exchange for Change was appointed to run schemes in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland (which will not include glass) back in May 2025, leaving Wales with a tight window of just over a year to implement the scheme. The drinks industry said that significant work remains to finalise implementation details to ensure the scheme can be delivered effectively in Wales.

Llŷr Gruffydd, Cabinet Minister for Rural Resilience and Sustainability, said: “The appointment follows a robust process to identify a deposit management organisation which will support the establishment of the scheme and work in partnership with producers, retailers, local authorities and other partners to successfully implement the DRS in Wales.

“By applying a deposit which is redeemed when drinks containers are returned, the scheme will tackle litter whilst supporting the collection of high-quality recycled materials. In turn, the DRS will help provide a pathway towards the roll-out of reuseable drinks containers in Wales.

” I look forward to working with Exchange for Change and our delivery partners as we work to establish a DRS that works for Wales, and with those schemes being implemented in the other nations of the UK..”

Director general of the British Soft Drinks Association, Andy Bagnall, said: “The appointment of Exchange for Change in Wales means a single scheme administrator across the United Kingdom – a crucial milestone in delivering a successful Deposit Return Scheme by October 2027 – but there is now no time to lose on implementation.

“With little more than a year until its go live, it is welcome that Exchange for Change can work with the Welsh Government and stakeholders across the supply chain to establish the conditions for delivering the scheme in Wales in a way that avoids unnecessary cross-border complexity.

“However, while preparations are already well advanced for launching the Deposit Return Scheme in October 2027 for England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, delivering the scheme in Wales within such a short timeframe means there can be no further delays. Wales’ decision to include glass from day one also creates significant additional operational complexity, and the Welsh Government must continue to be realistic about what’s possible in the time.

“We look forward to working constructively with Exchange for Change, the Welsh Government and partners across the supply chain to address these challenges and deliver a DRS in Wales that increases recycling, reduces litter, and works for consumers, businesses and the environment.”

Across the UK the soft drinks sector is contributing the majority of the more than £1bn committed to building collection infrastructure and systems.

This investment is expected to support more than 4,300 jobs across the UK’s circular economy.

The Association of Convenient Stores (ACS) said that stores urgently need clarity on the role they will play as return point operators to ensure there is sufficient time to invest in infrastructure, adapt store operations and test the systems required to deliver the scheme successfully from day one.

ACS chief executive Ed Woodall said: “We welcome the appointment of Exchange for Change as the deposit management organisation for Wales and the progress that this represents towards delivering a deposit return scheme on time in October 2027. This decision provides an important foundation for the work that now needs to take place.

” With just over a year to go, it is vital that the Welsh Government and Exchange for Change move quickly to provide clarity on the operational requirements, particularly around glass, that retailers will face and how the scheme will work in practice.”

This article was written by

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