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Mexico Clears Paramount-Warner Bros. Deal as US Antitrust Fight Persists

By  |  August 16, 2026
Warner Bros. Discovery, CNN+, streaming

Mexico’s competition authority has approved Paramount Skydance’s planned combination with Warner Bros. Discovery, removing another regulatory obstacle to the blockbuster media transaction even as an antitrust challenge by a coalition of U.S. states continues to delay its completion.

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    Mexico’s National Antitrust Commission, or CNA, cleared the transaction following a global regulatory review that stretched over eight months, according to Expansión. The Mexican publication reported that the deal is valued at about $110 billion and would combine some of the entertainment industry’s most recognizable studios, television networks and franchises.

    The approval puts Mexico alongside dozens of jurisdictions that have allowed the transaction to proceed. Paramount said the review covered 68 countries and included authorities in the European Union, the UK, Australia, Canada, Brazil and China, as well as the U.S. Justice Department, according to Expansión.

    The Mexican authority had not separately issued public comments explaining its decision as of Expansión’s report on Saturday.

    The combination would give Paramount control of Warner Bros. Discovery’s production operations and a broad collection of film, television and streaming properties. Expansión estimated the resulting company would hold roughly 18% of the relevant market, placing it behind Netflix.

    Related: Paramount-Warner Deal Turns Into Test of State Antitrust Power

    Paramount has argued that competition agencies around the world independently examined the transaction under their respective laws and concluded there was no basis to prevent it from moving ahead, according to the company statement cited by Expansión.

    The international clearances, however, haven’t ended the deal’s antitrust risk.

    California and 11 other U.S. state attorneys general are pursuing litigation challenging the transaction. That case has emerged as the principal remaining obstacle to completing the combination, Expansión reported.

    The states’ challenge has kept uncertainty hanging over a transaction that would further consolidate an entertainment business already reshaped by the shift from traditional television to streaming. Paramount Chief Executive Officer David Ellison has portrayed the merger as a way to create a stronger competitor capable of spending more on premium programming and supporting creative workers, according to Expansión.

    The dispute has also opened the possibility of concessions. Paramount is considering strategic alternatives including a potential sale of CNN as it seeks to resolve California’s lawsuit, Reuters reported last week.

    For Mexico, the decision removes a significant regulatory question surrounding the combination. For Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery, though, the more consequential antitrust battle has shifted back to the US, where the states’ case could determine when — or whether — one of the media industry’s largest consolidations reaches the finish line.

    Source: Expansion