UK leaning towards intervening in $110 billion Paramount-Warner Bros Discovery d

LONDON, June 30 (Reuters) - Britain is leaning towards intervening in Paramount Skydance Corp's proposed $110 billion takeover of Warner Bros Discovery, citing concerns over ‌the impact on media freedom and the provision of on-demand programming.

The move ‌is the first step in a process that could see the deal referred to the country's ​anti-trust regulator, which made headlines in 2023 when it blocked Microsoft's $69 billion acquisition of "Call of Duty" maker Activision Blizzard to the fury of the two U.S. companies. It later changed its mind after Microsoft amended its acquisition plan.

Britain's possible intervention comes as ‌the global deal has already ⁠been cleared by the United States, China, Australia, Germany, France and Saudi Arabia.

Culture minister Lisa Nandy, who set a July 6 ⁠deadline for the companies to respond, said in a statement: "I am mindful of the need to reach a final decision in a timely manner, and I will endeavour to ​do ​so as appropriate."

Nandy said while the deal ​was global in nature it would ‌have an impact on British assets. Paramount owns Britain's Channel 5, a free-to-air broadcaster which broadcasts news programmes, while Warner owns CNN Int

Fuente original: Yahoo Finance (https://finance.yahoo.com/news/uk-minded-intervene-paramounts-110-121650783.html)