Paramount CEO David Ellison arrives on the red carpet in 2025 for the Kennedy Center Honors at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. U.K. authorities on Thursday approved a merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo
Aug. 6 (UPI) -- British officials on Thursday approved Paramount-Skydance's $111 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, saying there are no competition nor public grounds to stand in its way.
This comes after Paramount increased its promises of news and other programming in Britain, Variety reported. Lisa Nandy, the U.K.'s culture secretary, who previously said she wanted to look at the deal in more detail, said she would not intervene.
Nandy decided "not to issue a Public Interest Intervention Notice on the basis that the assurances and further legally binding commitments she has secured at this point from Paramount provide a set of protections that will help safeguard the continued availability of a diverse range of broadcasting and on-demand services in the U.K.; the continuation of their distinct editorial identities; and the distinct editorial identities of key U.K. news programs."
The Competition and Markets Authority has also approved the deal, Deadline reported.
