The biggest media merger in a generation just hit a speed bump across the Atlantic. Paramount Skydance’s $110 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, which sailed through an eight-month US Department of Justice antitrust review, is now staring down potential intervention from the UK government over concerns about media ownership concentration.
UK Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has signaled the deal could be referred to the Competition and Markets Authority for deeper investigation. The CMA has advanced to phase 3 diligence, with scrutiny due by August 7, 2026. For a transaction that seemed to be cruising toward a Q3 2026 close, this is the kind of complication that makes deal lawyers reach for the coffee pot.
What the deal actually looks like
Announced on February 27, 2026, the acquisition values Warner Bros. Discovery at $81 billion in equity and $110 billion in enterprise value. That works out to $31 per share for WBD stockholders, priced at roughly 7.5 times fully synergized 2026 EBITDA.
The deal’s backstory traces to Skydance Media’s earlier acquisition of Paramount Global in 2025, a transaction valued at around $8 billion that installed David Ellison as chairman and CEO of the combined Paramount Skydance entity.
