Paramount–Warner Bros. Discovery: The Merger Enters Its Final Phase As Europe Raises Its Voice

Less than three months after the signing of the definitive agreement at the end of February, the mega‑acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery by Paramount Skydance has accelerated and is moving toward closing much faster than expected. On April 23, Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders approved the transaction, confirming Paramount Skydance’s victory over rival bidders – including Netflix, which withdrew at the end of February. The 31‑dollar‑per‑share offer values WBD at around 81 billion dollars in equity, or 111 billion including debt. On the financing side, Paramount Skydance has syndicated 49 billion dollars in bridge financing across 18 global institutions and secured a further 10 billion in long‑term funding backed by the assets of the combined company. On May 20, the most operationally relevant update arrived: closing is now expected by July 15, 2026, ahead of the previously indicated deadline in the third quarter. Regulatory approvals so far are limited to Germany and Slovenia.

It is on the European front that the game looks most delicate. On May 22, a broad coalition of audiovisual industry organizations sent a letter to the European Commission, the European Parliament and EU governments, calling on Brussels to go beyond a purely formal review and to examine in depth the implications of the merger for the European ecosystem, flagging risks for independent production, cultural diversity and market balance. According to the Financial Times, Paramount is already engaged in preliminary consultations with the European Commission and is preparing to formally notify the transaction in the coming weeks, opening a phase in which possible structural or behavioral remedies could become central.

A concrete flashpoint concerns the SkyShowtime joint venture, an SVOD platform jointly owned by Paramount and Comcast and active in 22 European markets. HBO Max currently operates in 21 of these territories, and Ellison’s stated plan to merge Paramount+ and HBO Max into a single global platform sits in potential tension with the JV’s current 50/50 structure. In this context, according to trade outlets such as Deadline, scenarios are gaining traction that range from a deep overhaul of commercial agreements to a full takeover of SkyShowtime and its direct integration into the new group’s EMEA perimeter – possibilities that European regulators and local players are watching very closely.

For Italian professionals, the most immediate vantage point remains the relationship between Warner/HBO and Sky, a long‑standing partner for HBO content distribution. The potential renegotiation of output deals and the reconfiguration of rights after the creation of the new giant could affect Sky Italia’s editorial offering, the level of competition between global and local platforms, and the windows available to the national independent production sector. In the background, the announced participation of Gulf sovereign wealth funds in the deal – as reported by Variety and The Hollywood Reporter – and the debate around soft power in a group that will include, among others, CNN and HBO add a geopolitical dimension that European authorities are unlikely to overlook. For the Italian and European industry, the coming months – between notification in Brussels, possible remedies, and closing expected by the end of the third quarter – will help reshape the scale, leverage and ambitions of a Hollywood counterpart that is about to change face.

Sources: SEC, Logo-Pres, Deadline, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter