Britain's culture secretary is preparing to block or heavily condition Paramount's $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery, citing concerns over media ownership concentration and competition in an increasingly streaming-dominated market.
Lisa Nandy has signaled her intention to invoke state powers to scrutinize the deal, which would merge a vast entertainment empire controlling Hollywood studios, UK television, cable networks, and streaming platforms under one corporate roof. The combined entity would own the studios behind Superman, Batman and Top Gun franchises, operate Channel 5 in Britain, control sports broadcaster TNT Sports, run news channel CNN, and operate streaming services Paramount+ and HBO Max.
In a written ministerial statement Tuesday, Nandy said she was "minded to" refer the merger to two independent UK regulators. The communications watchdog Ofcom would examine the impact on media plurality, while the Competition and Markets Authority would investigate competitive concerns arising from the deal.
"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," Nandy said.
The culture secretary's concern extends beyond traditional broadcasting to encompass the growing dominance of streaming services. She noted that the 2002 Enterprise Act does not currently grant regulators power to examine a merger's effect on on-demand viewing platforms, a significant gap given how viewers now consume content.
"The legislation was drafted at a time where viewing was largely via broadcast linear channels, it does not cover the effect of a merger on streaming or video-on-demand services," Nandy explained. "I believe this ought to be able to be considered in relation to this and all future media mergers given the role on-demand viewing now plays in the market."
If Nandy proceeds with intervention, she has indicated she will draft secondary legislation to expand Ofcom's remit to include streaming and on-demand services in future media merger reviews. Both Paramount and Warner Bros Discovery have until July 6 to respond to the UK government's concerns. Nandy emphasized she has not yet made a final decision on intervention, but the written notice signals where the government's thinking stands.
Should she formally intervene, a public interest investigation process spanning up to 40 days would commence.
The UK move comes as European Union regulators indicated last week they are likely to approve the takeover subject to certain remedies being negotiated between the companies and the European Commission. The commission has a July 7 deadline to either green-light the deal or launch an in-depth investigation. The US Department of Justice already cleared the transaction this month.
Nandy has framed her preliminary intervention around protecting UK audiences and maintaining genuine choice in an increasingly consolidated media landscape. She highlighted services likely to be caught under UK scrutiny, including Channel 5, TNT Sports, Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, CNN International, and the two major streaming platforms.
The timing of Britain's intervention underscores a broader regulatory pattern where individual nations are asserting control over major cross-border media deals even as global approval pathways advance. The UK's willingness to move independently from American and European decisions suggests regulators in London see distinct national interests at stake.
Author James Rodriguez: "This is precisely the moment where streaming's reshaping of media ownership demands updated regulatory tools, and Nandy's push to bring on-demand services into the merger review framework is overdue common sense."
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