UK 'minded' to intervene in historic Paramount and Warner Bros deal over media plurality fears

The UK culture secretary could be about to put a spanner in the works for one of the biggest media deals in history.

Lisa Nandy said she is "minded" to intervene in Paramount Skydance's $110bn (£81.4bn) acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery over public interest concerns.

"Following engagement with the parties and independent research, my department ​has today written to the current and proposed owners of Warner Bros Discovery on ​my behalf to inform them that ⁠I am minded ⁠to intervene," Ms Nandy said.

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The public interest concerns identified were the need for "a sufficient plurality of views in news media" and "for there to be a sufficient plurality of persons with control of the media enterprises, or the enterprises providing on-demand programme services", according to the statement.

The media giants control UK-based TV channels, including Channel 5, TNT Sports, Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, and CNN International, as well as the Paramount+ and HBO Max streaming services.

What next?

The "minded to" intervene letter invites written engagement from the companies, the culture secretary said.

They have until 6 July to respond.

But no final decision has been made on whether to intervene, Ms Nandy added.

If she were to intervene, the communications regulator Ofcom would assess the public interest considerations, while competition watchdog, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), would report back to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on the competition effects.

Ms Nandy said she was "mindful of the need to reach a final decision in a timely manner" and will "endeavour to do so".

What's been going on?

The CMA began its assessment of the deal in early June.

Due to the global nature of the transaction, multiple countries and the European Union will need to examine and approve the merger.

The EU is on course to approve the takeover if the companies agree to as-yet-undisclosed remedies, according to media reports.

Why does it matter?

A merger of WBD and Paramount Skydance is one of the biggest media deals in history, with significant impacts on TV, filmmaking, and the possible future of the cinema.

Such a combination encompasses two of Hollywood's five legacy studios.

Paramount Skydance would also own CNN, as well as CBS News, sparking concern about concentrating news services within a small number of companies.

The company is also headed by David Ellison, the son of Trump ally Larry Ellison, who put up tens of billions of dollars to satisfy funding guarantees for the WBD bid.

In response to Ms Nandy's comments, Paramount Skydance said it is "confident that our proposed transaction does not pose any media plurality issues in the UK".

Warner Bros Discovery has been contacted for comment.

(c) Sky News 2026: UK 'minded' to intervene in historic Paramount and Warner Bros deal over media plurality fears